


Playing His Game

by KoiKoiFish



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types, Pocket Monsters: Sword & Shield | Pokemon Sword & Shield Versions
Genre: Angst, Biting, Blackmail, Desperation, Dragon Hybrid Raihan, Drama, Implied/Referenced Torture, Leon slowly descends into madness, Lying and Lying, M/M, Marking, Nesting, Non-Consensual Drug Use, Psychological Torture, Rose is why we can't have nice things, Some Omegaverse Themes, Suicidal Thoughts, not actually omegaverse
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-22
Updated: 2020-03-28
Packaged: 2021-02-27 11:00:57
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 15
Words: 50,854
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22366051
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KoiKoiFish/pseuds/KoiKoiFish
Summary: Rose made it really clear that on a scope of the whole region, Leon and Raihan were just disposable pawns on the chessboard, no matter their status. And struggling against the game master only made them be disposed of quicker. Leon knew he had to either become the game master himself or let himself be discarded.
Relationships: Dande | Leon/Kibana | Raihan, Raihan/Leon
Comments: 56
Kudos: 229





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Ever since I saw fanarts of dragon Raihan, I couldn't help my head brimming with ideas.

The most popular online, second strongest and number one in the “Man I want to be hugged by” category – were all traits that described Raihan, who opened every season of the Gym Challenges together with his rival, Champion Leon. The people of Galar called Raihan 'perfect' and 'put together in every aspect of his life'.

However, Gym Leader Raihan had some strange habits that people who were around him for longer than a few days would notice. The Gym Challengers that were only in his gym for only a few hours maximum didn't take note of anything strange, but ask any of the staff members and they would tell you that Raihan had a sort of cycle he went through every month.  
  
The first week of the month was always fine, with Raihan showing his cheerful grin, posing for selfies, giving autographs and talking to fans. In the second week, Raihan would grow more distant and reserved, sometimes not noticing that people were talking to him or forgetting names. Fans still found that endearing, especially since it played into his phone addict persona to look up names, but the gym staff were very worried, especially since it was a recurring thing.

The third week was when things would start getting really weird, with Raihan talking to his pokemon more than he spoke to people, never seen without one of his trusty dragons by his side. He would speak to them as if he understood completely what they were saying, he would play with them – but not like other trainers did in the wild area. During that week, Raihan's style of play more resembled two animals playing rather than a trainer and their pokemon, with Raihan roughhousing with the Pokemon all the time.

And finally, the last week each month would be the one where sometimes Gym Challengers weren't even allowed into the Hammerlocke Gym. Raihan was very irritable by then, completely absorbed with his pokemon companions, sometimes found sleeping on the floor cuddling with Flygon or Goodra. Gym assistants would be worried and wake the leader up, only to be met with an animalistic growl, those ice blue eyes staring at the people who woke him up like they had committed some sort of crime. He wouldn't lash out at anyone, neither yelling nor hitting, but he would bare his sharp teeth and let out a huff in annoyance.

Strangely, the dragon trainer's breath would come out in white puffs like it would near Circhester, but it wasn't that cold in Hammerlocke as to make breath visible, so people were always left wondering how the man did that. Raihan's eyes were always glowing that week and the only person who seemed to be able to hold a conversation with him without making him angry was Champion Leon who came by on the 27th every month and took the Gym Leader to a meeting with the chairman Rose.

The gym staff always asked the Champion how he managed to handle Raihan during this time, but Leon always feigned ignorance.

“It's probably because we've been friends for so long”, Leon would say before the two left the Gym.

Truth be told, Leon knew _exactly_ what was going on with Raihan and why he was so irritable. He knew that his friend was having a terrible headache, fighting the symptoms of the ailment he lived with for almost his whole life. If the Champion would be forced to tell the truth – the whole truth – he was sure that people would assume he's lying because of how ridiculous that sounded. ' _You see – Raihan isn't a human.'_ just sounded so unreal to Leon, he wasn't sure whether to laugh or cry. 


	2. Caught in a Web of Secrets

Leon first saw Raihan when they were children. He was eight years old then, running through the wild area after picking some herbs that his mother needed. He stopped halfway though when he saw a boy laying motionless in the tall grass, clutching a Goomy to his chest. He assumed that it was a Pokemon trainer that had been attacked by wild Pokemon to the point of blacking out, but upon closer inspection, the purple-haired boy realized that not only was the other boy unharmed, the pokemon in the area avoided him like he was some sort of threat.

“Hey!”, Leon called out. As he got no reaction, he grumbled and got closer, gently shaking the kid awake. “Hey, you!”

The boy had finally opened his eyes, looking annoyed upon his sleep being disturbed. “What gives? I was asleep.”

“I-I can see that!” - those ice-blue eyes were so mesmerizing that Leon couldn't help but stutter. “But it's dangerous to sleep here, don't you have a home to get to?”  
  
The boy looked at him in confusion, as if Leon had said something funny. “I always sleep here. Is it bothering someone?”

“I already said that it's dangerous! Wait...you _always_ sleep here? What about your parents?”

Raihan just got up, Goomy still in his arms. “Look, I don't know who you are, but you're really annoying with all these questions. I just want to sleep, okay?”

After that, the boy turned on his heel and was about to walk away, but Leon was quick to stop him. “Leon.”

“What?”  
  


“You said you don't know who I am.”, the purple-haired boy paused to let the information sink in “I'm Leon and I'm worried about you sleeping here in the tall grass in the wild area. Come back to town with me, I'm sure mom wouldn't mind you using our couch or something.”

Raihan turned to face the other boy that was looking at him with a smile that felt warmer than the actual sun that was shining down on them. How could someone be so kind to a person they just met? “Are you serious? You don't even know me and you are inviting me to your house? What if I'm dangerous?”

“You don't _look_ dangerous.”, Leon said with a softer smile, to which the other boy let out an annoyed growl, but didn't say anything in protest. “So, are you coming or would you rather listen to more of my questions?”

It seemed that Raihan's desire to sleep was bigger than his desire to argue with Leon, so he finally relented. “Fine, I'll come. Name's Raihan by the way.”

“Alright, let's go!”, Leon said and excitedly jogged on ahead. “Shouldn't you put Goomy back in her Pokeball though? It's easier to travel like that.”

Raihan looked down at the Pokemon he was holding, only to have her coo gently at him. He didn't have a Pokeball, but he didn't know how to put it in words for Leon to understand. So instead he lied. “I don't like keeping her in her Pokeball. I can't hug her like that.”  
  
He only knew what Pokeballs were thanks to Rose always carrying some, but he was never given any or any money to buy them either. Not like it mattered since most Pokemon were avoiding him anyway and Dragon-types like the Goomy he held were getting along fine with him. He often slept while curled up with other Pokemon or had the Dragons show him their berry-hunting spots so Raihan never went hungry inbetween the times he was picked up by Rose.

“Ah, I get it! You're one of the people who prefer their companions to follow them around.” Leon's mind was still caught on what Raihan told him before, that he slept out in the open...was he an orphan? No wonder he wanted to have his pokemon with him at all times then. He couldn't imagine living all by himself...

They got closer to Leon's house and the purple-haired male sped up when he smelled the scent of his mother's curry. “Oh wow, looks like we got lucky! Mom's cooking her famous sweet decorative curry!” Well, he said it was famous, but it was simply his favorite dish. Still, he wanted the other boy to feel welcome and less apprehensive to eat together with them.

He opened the door and called out into the house, so his mother would hear him over her cooking. “Mom, I'm home and I brought a friend!”

“Shh, not so loud dear!”, his mother shushed and Leon immediately did as she said. His baby brother was probably soundly asleep upstairs, he didn't want to disturb him.

Thus, he simply motioned Raihan to come closer and the boy did, looking up at the woman apprehensively. He still knew that it was customary for humans to introduce themselves to each other, so he did. “Nice to meet you, my name is Raihan.”

He cited that off like he had practiced with Rose so many times before and it seemed to please the woman that he had good manners. She soon noticed that something was off with the boy her son brought in though and the way the woman looked him up and down like that made Raihan tense up.  
  
“You look like you have been hit with Mud Slap and Razor Leaf one too many times. What exactly happened when you found this boy, Leon? I don't remember you ever playing with him before. And those eyes...”, the woman trailed off, putting as nicely as she could that Raihan looked like he has been through hell and back and that she didn't trust the vibes he was giving off with the unnaturally blue eyes.  
  
“I think it's best if I leave.”, Raihan said bluntly, instantly feeling unwelcome again. He was good at reading people despite barely spending time with anyone but Rose and Oleana, they always told him he wasn't ready for human interaction yet.  
  
The smaller boy looked at his mother, then back at Raihan, as if to ask if the boy could still stay with them. “Mom, I found him sleeping in the wild area, he says that he has no home to return to and that he sleeps in the wild area every night. I couldn't just leave him there..”

“But you know I can't afford to feed a third child...”, the woman said, then sighed. Her son was going to burn out trying to save the whole world one day. “You are always so kindhearted and trusting, Leon. I would love to help your friend out, but-”  
  
“Can he at least sleep here?”, Leon pressed on, determined to give the boy what he had promised him.

His mother seemed reluctant, but just when Raihan was about to leave she gave in. “Fine. He will have to go shower first though, otherwise the couch will get dirty.”

Leon smiled and nodded eagerly, all but pulling Raihan along to the bathroom. He left the boy standing there, looking utterly confused - with the Goomy looking just as perplexed - as Leon left the room. He stood there, unsure if he should just start showering, when the other boy returned with a freshly laundered set of clothing that obviously belonged to Leon and a fluffy towel.

“I can't accept that-”, Raihan pointed to the stack of clothing, but the purple-haired boy would have none of this.

Leon just set both the clothing and the towel down next to the shower and grinned at his newfound friend proudly. “I don't know when your birthday is, but consider it an early present!”  
  
This was the first time Raihan received a present and he had no idea now to react. His lips twitched into a smile and a blush crept onto his cheeks as he approached Leon and pressed a kiss to his cheek, like his instincts were telling him to do. He then looked into Leon's eyes with the first genuine smile that he ever had on his lips. “Thank you, Leon. I think I'll make today my birthday then.”

Leon raised a hand to the cheek that had been kissed, incredulously looking at the taller boy as his own cheeks became red. Has he just been kissed? Just like that? Without another word, he rushed out of the bathroom and headed downstairs to go help his mother. He knew there was something odd about Raihan, he didn't behave like the other kids his age did, but perhaps he just didn't know that it wasn't alright to kiss someone out of the blue like that...that would make sense since he seemed to not have parents. How did he survive up until now? No doubt he was on the verge of starving...Leon wanted to help the boy somehow...  
  
“Mom, I know you said you couldn't afford to feed three children...but couldn't I just give half of my food to him?”, Leon asked as he set the table for the two of them. Ever since his father left, his mother became colder and more grounded, only giving loving care to her sons. But not before Leon could learn everything about being considerate and caring. So, it hurt Leon's heart to hear what his mother said next.

“Then you won't get enough nutrients. Just forget it, you can't save the world, Leon. You will learn that eventually.”, she ended their discussion and put the curry onto two plates, putting the pot back on the stove after she was done.

They ate in silence, Leon not knowing yet how much his mother's words would stick to him all the way into adulthood. Somewhere in the middle of their meal, Raihan came back down, wearing the clean clothing that Leon gave him and his mother was about to protest, but the purple-haired male was quicker to speak out.

“Hey, Raihan! Are you enjoying your birthday present?”, Leon asked, noticing how Raihan was still holding onto Goomy, which was wet again, presumably Raihan took the pokemon to shower as well. That was certainly odd that he didn't seem to be able to put the pokemon down for a second.  
  
The boy nodded and smiled a little again, making Leon's heart flutter. Raihan had a really beautiful smile. “Thank you, though I will get going now. Your mother is a nice person, taking care of you like that and I wouldn't want you getting in trouble with her because of me.”

Leon jumped up and rushed over to the taller boy, looking like he didn't believe what he was hearing. “You can't just go sleep out in the open like that again. What do you do at night, when it gets colder?”

“I go hunting for berries and eat them, then go back to sleep in the morning.”, Raihan said nonchalantly, like it was the most normal thing to do. “You worry too much. I've been fine on my own until now.”

“But what if-”, Leon started again, but his mother cleared her throat, calling Leon's attention back to herself.

“Leon, dear. Raihan doesn't seem to want your help and besides, your food is getting cold. Leave him be and come here, okay?”, she said, gesturing to the empty seat that Leon left behind.

Raihan turned to leave again, opening the front door before he could make Leon more conflicted by talking more. As he swung the door open, Rose and Oleana were standing there, looking at him in a judgemental way before they pushed past him into the house with Rose putting on his showman smile. Raihan knew he would get punished for wandering off with another human like that when it was almost time for him to take his medication.

“I apologize for the sudden intrusion, but I have a few questions if I may.”, the man spoke up, calling the attention of Leon's mother to himself.

Everybody in Galar knew Rose ever since he took over as the chairman of the Pokemon league as well as the CEO of a massive research facility named Macro Cosmos. Not only that, but he was deemed Galar's wealthiest man by many respectable magazines.

So of course, when faced with a man of such power and status, Leon's mother jumped up and approached the man, her demeanor changing completely. “Of course, sir. Would you like a cup of tea while you're here?”

“No need to burden yourself with accommodations, I will be gone in just a minute. I just need to know if something out of the ordinary happened while this boy – Raihan – was staying here.”, the man asked, looking at Leon who immediately turned red upon the memory of the peck on the cheek he received.

“N-No, Sir. We came here, he showered and was about to leave again.”, Leon said, deciding to leave that detail out.

Oleana nodded, then turned to the chairman. “It appears we have nothing to worry about, Sir.”

Rose frowned in thought. That stutter and blush had to mean something, but he didn't want to stir up a commotion, so he would simply get the answers from Raihan directly. As long as no property seemed damaged and nobody was hurt it would be wise to leave the area to avoid raising suspicions. “Thank you for your time. I had just received a report of a homeless child and was about to investigate for myself, but it seems you had found him faster, thank you for your troubles.”

“Sir, we need to adjourn, this family is having lunch right now.”, Oleana offered, walking towards the door, where Raihan still stood.

“Right you are.”, Rose nodded, turning to leave as well, ushering Raihan to walk through the door by patting his back.

Back then, Leon didn't understand why the boy looked so reluctant to go with the man that everyone praised as revolutionary and rich beyond imagination – even less so when he saw Raihan enter the Gym Challenge alongside him just a year later, recommended by no other than Chairman Rose himself. But as soon as he became Champion at ten and actually had to visit Rose Tower, pieces started fitting together. He had to visit very often due to the tasks he received from Rose and once a month he would see Raihan there as well, but his rival would act like he hadn't seen him, pulling at his sleeves to hide himself even more. After three months of Raihan so clearly ignoring him, Leon had enough. He came to Rose Tower even though he didn't have to be here today and waited for Raihan to walk out at the designated time.

As expected, the boy came out of the building, pulling at his sleeves as always...but this time, thanks to Raihan not noticing him yet, Leon could take a closer look at his friend. He saw punctures on his neck, as if someone had carelessly inserted a needle there and despite Raihan pulling his sleeves he could clearly see that there were _red marks_ on his wrists. Just what was going on?  
  
“Raihan!”, Leon finally called his friend's attention to himself and Raihan jumped a little.

“Hey, Champ.”, the taller male offered, trying his best at his usual cocky smile. “Called in by the boss, as usual? He's sure working you hard.”

“No, I came here to see you today.”, Leon said, noticing how Raihan visibly cringed and his smile fell.

The taller boy shook his head. “Today is bad for me. I have some tasks I need to fulfill, so I'll be on my way now.”

He was clearly lying and Leon saw that, but Raihan was quick to run away before his friend could call him out on that. That left Leon with only one possibility – one he really didn't want to have to resort to – to ask Chairman Rose directly. The purple-haired boy got up and gathered his courage, heading into the building. He approached the reception desk and was enthusiastically greeted by the man sitting at that desk.

“Ah, Champion Leon! What brings you here today? You don't have a meeting scheduled with the Chairman today.”, he said, checking today's schedule once again to see if he had made a mistake.

Leon nodded and put his hands onto the desk, seeing as he was barely taller than the edge of it and he tried to make himself look more important, but in hindsight it probably just looked cute. “But I would like to have a meeting with him, if he has a time slot open? It won't take long.”

“Hold up, let me call his office.”, the man said, dialing the number for the CEO's office. “Hello, Mr. Chairman, Sir? Champion Leon requests a meeting with you. Huh? Alright, Sir, I'll tell him to come see you immediately.”

Leon perked up at that, he hasn't expected for Rose to actually take time to talk to him right away, he knew that the man was always booked with meetings at the end of the month. He accepted the visitor's elevator card from the receptionist, hurrying to go up to the office. While he couldn't make the elevator go faster, he ran the distance that he could influence the speed of. He knew that the chairman hated waiting, especially if he didn't gain anything out of the meeting. Little did Leon know back then that Rose would gain _everything_ out of that meeting with him, in exchange for just the info on Raihan.

“Leon, it's sure rare to see you in my office on your day off. Is there something bothering you? Come sit down and let's talk.”, Rose greeted with that usual saccharine smile of his, sitting down in his chair and gesturing Leon to come sit down on one of the couches, which the boy did. “So, what's on your mind?”

What Leon said next surprised the chairman, but made him gleeful all the same. “It's about Raihan, Sir. I see him acting strange every time he exits here and he won't talk to me about what happened, so I was hoping you could provide some answers.”

“Your manner of speaking is truly splendid for a ten year old, Leon. You have been diligent with your etiquette classes, as I see.”, Rose swayed from the topic, but Leon knew better than to rush the man on anything.

“Thank you, Sir. I hope to become a champion you can be proud of.”, Leon said coyly, just like he had been taught. Accept compliments, but be humble.

“You already are, Leon. You came here being sick with worry about your friend and yet you don't rush my talk about things that do not pertain to the topic at hand.”, the chairman said proudly, getting a piece of paper from the drawer and starting to write on it. “I won't hold you up any longer though, so I will propose a deal to you.”

Leon looked up in confusion. A deal? That sounded somehow foreboding. Before he could ask what the deal entailed, Rose continued speaking. “Next month when Raihan comes here, you will be allowed to come with us and see for yourself why your friend is acting the way he does. But in return, you will agree to do whatever I tell you to and fulfill any task I give you.”

“I am already doing that, Sir?”, Leon asked in confusion, not realizing what it would entail if he agreed to that deal.

And Rose knew that he shouldn't expect a child to understand how broad the possibilities of 'everything' were. But that was exactly what he was hoping for, to have a puppet he could make do whatever he needed at the moment. He continued smiling as he stood up and slid Leon the piece of paper that he had just written the terms and conditions on.

“Then there should be no problem in you accepting my deal, right?”, he pushed on, putting a pen down next to the contract. “But it's not a legal contract if it isn't signed by both parties and approved by the chairman, so the only thing missing is your signature.”

Leon had heard his mother warn him about signing something without reading it first, but when he read it, it was pretty straightforward. In exchange for knowing what was happening to Raihan, he had to: One - keep what he saw a secret, which made sense since Raihan wasn't even speaking about whatever happened to him. Two - Do as the chairman says, which was the condition they had verbally agreed on already. It was the final condition that made Leon frown.

_Any disobedience to those rules will be punished._

“What do you mean by that, Sir?”, he pointed to the sentence.

Rose shrugged, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. “What you will see is something that nobody in Galar besides me, Oleana and Raihan himself knows yet. So, should you for example blab to someone about it, that will be severely punished. Nobody can know about this. If they do, Raihan will suffer and you will too.”

The champion swallowed and looked back at the paper. Was he up for it? Or should he just give up on learning that heavily-guarded secret and continue with life as usual? This was a lot of responsibility to take on just because Raihan seemed to be hurt once a month. Could he even save his friend just by knowing what ailed him? But he also didn't like not knowing what was happening to his friend, he couldn't even try to help Raihan if he didn't know about his condition.

Rose's smartphone rang and he picked it up, speaking to someone before he turned to Leon. “I would love to let you decide on this in your own time, but I have a meeting in five minutes, so I have to pressure you a little, forgive me.” - he didn't sound sorry at all - “I am giving you a choice. Either you sign this now and accept the deal or you leave the room and never bring up that topic again. The choice is yours, Leon.”

There wasn't much of a choice when this was the only opportunity Leon would get to learn what was happening to Raihan. He knew he had to sign this or his friend would forever suffer in silence.


	3. Stay on Guard

One month passed by as if nothing happened, Leon still diligently fulfilled every task given to him by Rose, with the only difference being that he had to take even more classes, his manner of speaking soon evolving past what a normal ten year old would say. And then finally, on the 27th next month, he could see what he had signed his life away for, following the chairman to the lobby, where Oleana had already met up with Raihan. Raihan was surprised to see Leon stand there next to Rose as they all took the elevator down to where the laboratories were. However, he only glared at Rose and _growled_ instead of saying anything.

“I see you are on the verge of losing your humanity again, Raihan. I wonder why you never attacked Leon so far, seeing how often the two of you hang out despite it being the end of the month.”, Rose mused, not seeming intimidated by the boy at all.

To be fair, the two of them _only_ got to see each other at the end of the month where Rose would be too swamped with meetings and work to make Leon work for him all the time instead. That was the time where Raihan went into hibernation, sleeping most of the time and when Leon would ask him about it, the taller boy just said that he was having a terrible headache. Still, Raihan always made time to play with Leon or go out to train in the wild area and Leon couldn't be more grateful to have that time together with Raihan.

“I hope you aren't planning on showing Leon the whole procedure.”, Raihan hissed, completely disregarding what the man said. “I won't forgive you if you do.”

Rose's eyes had a dangerous glimmer in them even though his lips were still formed into the usual smile. “Oh? I had the impression that you wouldn't forgive me regardless of what I do. After all, you wouldn't even be here right now if it wasn't for me. Not that I care much for your forgiveness.”, the man shrugged, still keeping that smile that Raihan came to hate. “Besides, Leon made a deal with me so I show him exactly what is up with you and as you know, I am a man of my word.”

The elevator stopped and Oleana grabbed Raihan by the shoulder, leading him out before the chairman and the champion left the elevator as well. Rose and Leon went into a laboratory instead of following the other two. The chairman closed the door and picked up a remote that laid on the table as soon as they were both inside.

“Now, Leon. While my wonderful assistant is making preparations, I shall explain the basics to you.”, Rose said, pushing a button on the remote to turn on the computer, showing Leon a complicated file, which the champion had to lean in to read properly.

Leon saw there being a picture of a baby that was most likely Raihan judging by the hair and skin and general face shape matching, but he had green eyes like Rose instead of the cyan eyes he had now and the name also didn't seem to match. Next to him was a dragon, a majestic black dragon with cyan eyes - his horns, wings and tail tapering off into a gradient from black to indigo, to azure and finally teal at the tips. He looked over the complicated words, half of which he didn't understand with them being scientific terms, but he wasn't stupid, so he simply stated what he did understand.

“Raihan is a combination of human and dragon DNA?”, he said, looking up at Rose, who proudly nodded and crossed his arms behind his back, looking at the computer screen.

“You see, Oleana isn't just a secretary. She is also the head of our science department, she has been ever since I started here. We want to make Galar the strongest region in the world, so we thought of a way to manifest that and came up with an idea to bio-engineer a human hybrid who would be stronger than any human could ever be.”, Rose said, turning off the screen. He took out out a syringe and a small bottle with clear liquid in it, placing them both on the table and simply leaving them there for now.

The champion was confused. Something didn't seem to add up.“Where did you even find a volunteer if nobody else knows about this, Sir?”

“A volunteer? Nobody would ever willingly give their child to me as a research subject.”, the chairman laughed, but his eyes were cold. “It just so happened that my cousin and her husband had died in an accident and I _happened_ to be present at the scene. Her child survived and I decided that was my chance.”

Leon couldn't believe what he just heard. Raihan's parents died in an accident and he was presumed dead, but was actually living under a different name as Rose's guinea pig? How could this man do something so horrible to a member of his family?

“Now, I know what you're thinking – _but Raihan is your family_ – right?”, Rose asked, his smile melting into something twisted – he clearly didn't think he was in the wrong here. “Raihan would have died for real if I hadn't picked him up and he should be proud to be alive as a means of advancing Galar's progress. The only thing that he's still lacking is control over the draconic side of his. Every month, he starts getting splitting pain in his head and his vertebra, since his body is trying to make him sprout a tail, horns and wings.”

“But that's horrible! How can he still live on like this?”, Leon asked, frantic to somehow stop this madness. How could Raihan live with such pain and keep quiet about it?

Rose grinned, as if he was waiting for that question. “The fact of the matter is that he doesn't _want_ to live like this, but he _has to_. He is too weak to kill himself with regenerative abilities like that. And if he were to tell someone about his condition, he would suffer more as people would torture him for the monster that he is.”

The champion shook, gripping the brim of his cap in frustration. Rose made him a monster and is now sounding so smug about Raihan not being able to escape this hell...it was just horrible. “So...what do you bring him here for every month?”  
  
“I'm glad you asked, Leon. Follow me.”, the chairman said, going into a room that clearly only he and Oleana had access to, with there being a fingerprint and iris scanner installed.

After the door opened, Rose and Leon stepped inside. The champion immediately wished he hadn't. Raihan sat there on the floor, chained to the wall and glaring at the two adults in the room. His teeth were bared, revealing his fangs as he struggled to break free. Oleana was calm as always, bowing at Rose and gesturing to a table that stood in the corner. “The tools for the experiments are ready, sir.”, she spoke in a monotone voice.

The table had an assortment of weapons laying on it and Leon swallowed. He never saw anything like this before, seeing as most fights were settled with Pokemon in Galar, and he didn't like where it was going.  
  
“You aren't about to-”, the purple-haired boy asked incredulously, but Rose shook his head, making Leon sigh in premature relief.

Then Rose's smile turned into a wicked grin as he picked up a gun from the table and unlocked the safety on it. This was a great chance to test something and he wasn't about to pass up on it. “This time I won't be the one shooting him. You will do it, Leon.”

Leon's face drained of all it's color and he looked horrified. He couldn't do it, he just couldn't hurt his friend. He vigorously shook his head, which only seemed to amuse the Chairman.

“Oh, but what's that? You told me you would do _anything I say_ in exchange for knowing the secret that we have been guarding so well. Or would you rather take the punishment that I mentioned? Let's see...how about I have your mother have an accident next? I'm sure your brother Hop would make a fine hybrid too. I was just thinking of expanding my sample size.”, Rose said that nonchalantly, pushing the weapon into Leon's hands and leaning closer to the boy, his gaze cold. “I can ruin both of your lives in an instant, Leon. So don't make me repeat myself and shoot.”

“Wh-What's the point of doing this?”, Leon stuttered, trembling in fear and disbelief. This man who wore a kind smile all the time, who took time to listen to his worries again and again...he was now making him shoot one of the few friends he was able to make and keep, threatening him with harming his family if he didn't. He felt like the world has turned on its head in a matter of seconds.

Rose hummed in acknowledgment. “Right, you don't know what the point is, so to you it seems like I am the villain here, doesn't it? Alright.” The chairman took a step forward and Raihan growled louder, as if warning him not to come closer. “I'm doing this to firstly test out his regenerative ability and secondly test out if he will let the dragon inside him take control when enough pain is inflicted. In other words, I want to test this body for it's emotional and physical stability.”

“That doesn't justify-”

“Leon, this is your last warning. Shoot him.”, Rose cut the boy off and watched as Leon took aim with trembling hands, tears beginning to flow down his cheeks.

“I...”, Leon stuttered out, looking at Raihan pleadingly. He wasn't sure what he wanted his friend to do - forgive him for sticking his nose where it clearly didn't belong, try to somehow break free? He knew he would kill a part of himself once he pulled the trigger. A part that was once innocent, believing that Rose could do him no harm, believing that he could save Raihan if he just knew what was happening to him.

And Raihan saw how desperate his friend was getting, something primal stirring within him as he saw the tears run down Leon's cheeks. Leon had never cried before, always smiling warmly at him, always seeing the positive side of things. He couldn't let this smile be corrupted. He glared at Rose, struggling against the chains that held him back from simply jumping up and tearing at his throat.

“If you let him shoot, I'll kill you. I don't even care if the world sees me as a monster anymore. You know that I _can_ kill you.”, he said, growling louder, his breath looking more like white smoke, as if he was just about to start breathing fire.

The chairman chuckled and clapped his hands. “Very interesting. This is the closest we've gotten him to lose control without actually even hurting him.... Leon, please do continue. All you have to do now is move your index finger.”

As if to emphasize how simple it was, Rose put his hands on top of Leon's and gently tapped against the finger that the boy had to move. Leon closed his eyes and turned his head away, his heart aching as Rose pulled the trigger with Leon's own hand – probably getting impatient to see results. The champion sunk to his knees as he was let go by the chairman, hearing a ringing in his ears of which he wasn't sure whether it was the gun's fault or if it was his own shock that caused it. He could distantly hear Raihan scream, he could hear Rose yell something out, but he couldn't move. He just sat there on the floor like a ragdoll and looked down to the gun in his hands, the putrid smell of gunpowder still lingering in the air as it burned in his lungs. He just felt like it all was just a bad dream, like he wasn't really here. He felt absolutely empty and disgusting as the realization set in that he _shot at Raihan_.

He shot at Raihan! If Raihan _didn't_ have regenerative abilities like Rose said, his friend was dead by now. Oh god, Leon was afraid to look up, he felt like he didn't even have the strength to lift his head anymore-

The thing that finally brought him back to reality was the warm feeling of someone embracing him. It wasn't Rose or Oleana, since they didn't smell of too much perfume but rather of cinnamon and home. Leon knew that smell all too well, it was Raihan's smell enveloping him – but how? He looked up, blinking his tears away just to see cyan eyes staring back at him with Raihan towering over him. Wait-when did he become so big? The purple-haired boy took a better look at his friend and realized that he had wings on his back, spread to protect Leon from further harm – a pose Leon was too familiar with thanks to his Charizard. Raihan was holding onto Leon as if he would lose his friend if he let go, almost painfully squeezing him against his chest.  
  
Leon's gaze moved over to where the boy had been before, the chains holding down Raihan were broken to pieces, as if they were nothing but mere plastic toys. “Rai...”, he whispered, checking Raihan for injuries. He saw absolutely nothing to prove that the bullet had hit him. Did he miss? He sure hoped he did, but with the way Rose was holding his hands steady, he kind of doubted that.

Speaking of the man, he was currently frozen in place, cautiously looking at the two children cuddling and clearly making no move to separate them yet. Since he wouldn't approach them yet, Leon decided to finally speak up and tell Raihan what was on his mind. “I'm so sorry. I didn't want to shoot. I really didn't want to...”

“I know. That bastard forced you.”, Raihan said, as if Rose wasn't in the room. “But I'm here now, I'll protect you.”

Rose seemed to finally get a grip on himself and clapped, as if he just saw the best performance in the world. “Amazing. You did very well, breaking free like that, but what now?”  
  
“Huh?”, both kids asked in unison.

“Well, you saved your princess from shooting you once again, but what do you intend to do now? If you follow through with your promise and kill me, you won't get the medicine that will make your dragon features disappear.”, Rose said, crossing his arms behind his back and grinning knowingly. “And should you go outside like that, people will fear you and try to kill you, only to make you suffer more pain before you slowly die as your body finally fails to regenerate.”

Raihan growled and hugged Leon closer, but he knew deep down that Rose was right. He would be killed if he walked the streets like this. He could still manage to free Leon of Rose's influence by doing that though.

“And if you're thinking of going through with it just so Leon won't have to listen to my orders, then go ahead. But how would your friend feel knowing that you died because of his foolish choices. It would be _Leon's own fault_ for getting so curious about your condition and losing you in the progress.”, Rose laughed and stretched out a hand to the two boys. “Now, I will propose you another deal. Leon will never be forced to come down here ever again and I won't order him anything related to hurting you, but in turn you two let go of each other and Raihan goes back to his usual spot to sit down.”

Raihan snarled, looking down at Leon again, who looked just as lost. However, the Champion gently stroked Raihan's arm, as if to reassure him that he would be alright. The taller boy gave in and let go of Leon, just to look up at Rose again and glare at him. “Just because I can't kill you doesn't mean I can't hurt you.”

Rose laughed and gave the dragon a daring look. “I dare you to try and hurt me. I wonder if Leon would get out of it unharmed if you do though. If you _really_ care about him, you will behave. Actually, that goes for both of you, since if either of you disobeys me I can ruin you in just seconds.” He pretended to be deep in thought, and then pointed at the camera. “I could trim the footage to make it look like Leon is shooting you on his own accord and leak it to the media or I could even put Leon behind bars if I shoot someone else with that exact same gun. I could also destroy Leon's family as I mentioned before – you know, the thing he cherishes so much? As for Raihan, I can easily make him suffer, both physically and emotionally since I have medication to alter his state at will.”

“Stop it...I'll do as you say. Just promise not to lay a finger on Leon or hurt any of his loved ones.”, Raihan gave up, looking anywhere but to the two other people in the room as he sat back down next to the broken chains, folding his wings behind his back.

“Alright, I won't hurt him as long as you behave. What about you, Leon? Will you listen or would you rather see your _precious_ friend hurt?”, Rose said that in an almost insultingly mocking tone, but Leon was too scared and emotional to care about the humiliation.

“I already signed to doing whatever you said, Sir.”, Leon said, hiding his face under the visor of his hat. Just like that, he realized that his mother was right, that the world wasn't as nice as he made it out to be. Just like that he realized that both he and Raihan were nothing but pawns to further Rose's plans. This whole deal that the chairman had offered him was faulty from the start, since Leon was so naive to believe that 'doing as Rose says' just meant more jobs being thrown his way. He looked down to his feet and didn't look up until Oleana had entered the room again. She carried the bottle of clear fluid and the syringe that Rose had put up on the desk before.

“Anyway...it's nice to know that having Leon cry was the catalyst for the dragon finally overpowering you. It seems that dragons really are as territorial and protective as they say.”, Rose mused, motioning the woman to go administer the medicine. “But as nice as it was seeing that dragon break free, I need the more human Raihan back for what I have in mind for him. After all, he is the second best pokemon trainer we have in Galar.”

Leon wondered what those plans could entail. “What are you intending to do, Sir?”

“Someone's getting really curious, huh?”, the chairman teased, but Leon wouldn't have any of it.

“I believe I signed the contract specifically to know what is happening to Raihan. If you expect me to uphold my part of the deal, I believe I can demand to have you fulfill yours.”, Leon said, his gaze turning cold as he looked straight at Rose. Two could play this game.

Rose hummed and crossed his arms behind his back. “You would make a fine businessman one day, you know that?” He asked, looking at Leon intently. “You're right about the condition I have to meet though, so I'll tell you what I want Raihan to do. It's nothing too grand, really. I'm planning on making him a Gym Leader in a year. The Hammerlocke Gym to be exact. The Gym Leader there is about to retire and Raihan has already proven strong enough to beat all the other Leaders in order to claim the final and most challenging Gym for himself.”

Leon nodded. That would be convenient for him since he had to meet up with the Gym Leaders quite often. At least that way he would see Raihan more often. He could do this, he still had his friends and family and to protect them he would do anything that Rose asked of him. He wouldn't allow that third paragraph of their contract to ever be fulfilled...or at least, that's what he told himself back then.


	4. Something Lost and Something Gained

And so, years passed. Both the Champion and the strongest Gym Leader were still playing their roles, still dancing like puppets on Chairman Rose's strings. Raihan was made to be the self-absorbed, selfie-loving Gym Leader while Leon was all smiles as he put on a show for the crowd. Only when they battled could they allow a little of their own personality slip through, Raihan baring his teeth and battling fiercely and Leon making cocky remarks of how his opponent could improve their strategy.

Both have been playing those roles perfectly for nearly thirteen years, being punished whenever they broke that facade. They could only be themselves when Leon took Raihan to see the Chairman once every month or when nobody could see them. Only then could they actually talk about how much it hurt to lie to their fans and friends. How much it hurt to hide that they were indeed _hurting._ But they knew that they still had each other, seeing as they were in the same situation together. Due to them only being able to talk about their predicament to each other, they grew closer and closer with every passing day, sharing pretty much every secret they had and often staying over at each other's houses. Sometime during all that, Raihan even proposed that he wanted to spend his nesting week, the last week of the month, with Leon.

“I don't feel comfortable without you anymore. Even my Pokemon don't come close to calming me down as much as you can.”, he confessed, holding onto the edge of Leon's cape as they stood in Raihan's kitchen after eating curry for lunch together. Raihan seemed flustered as he rambled on and on, trying to find excuses for why he was feeling that way. “The season hasn't begun yet and I heard that you'll be going back home when I have to go back to Rose for my medicine..I mean he promised you that he wouldn't hurt me too badly, but...”

He trailed off, but the champion could clearly see how terrified Raihan was. He didn't let it on and outsiders might not see that look on his face as a look of fear, but Leon knew better. After all, he had seen the same look every time when Oleana took Raihan downstairs and Leon was told to go up to see the chairman.

Leon worried his bottom lip between his teeth and frowned. If only he could simply say yes and stay with Raihan... “You know that I will need _his_ approval to stay with you the whole week, right? If he declines, I can't-”

Raihan nodded and let go of Leon's cape, looking down to his feet instead. “You're right, I'm sorry. There's no way he would allow that. And if he did, you would have a hefty price to pay.” The taller male's voice grew smaller and smaller and he honestly looked like he was about to break. “I was selfish to ask that of you.”

Seeing how utterly mortified his friend looked, Leon just couldn't not grant him that request. “I'll ask Rose anyway, okay? Maybe he will understand and allow it since he knows of your habits.”, Leon said with a smile, patting his friend's back gently in an attempt to cheer him up.

He started to wonder if what they had was even still considered friendship. They shared pretty much everything and he knew that Raihan absolutely loved cuddling him and Leon himself was absolutely content to just lay in the Gym Leader's arms...that wasn't what friends did, right?

“Raihan, what _are we_ to each other anyway?”, the purple-haired male asked, humming a little. They both risked so much for each other. Hell, Raihan was the one risking everything just for Leon alone while the Champion also did it for other people, like his family. He knew that the dragon-type trainer only held on to his life because otherwise Leon would blame himself. He knew that no person could endure this much suffering and still want to live of their own accord and still, Raihan managed to smile at him, he managed to joke around with Leon. Raihan was just a gift that kept on giving.

_God, Leon knew he loved this man._

In fact, the Champion knew that he loved Raihan for quite a while now. He enjoyed spending time with the taller male, he knew it wasn't just mutual pity for their situation. They didn't just share their tears, but they laughed together, teased each other... Raihan was everything Leon could ever want in a relationship, but what did the dragon trainer think of that?

Raihan didn't let Leon wait for too long for an answer. “What do you want us to be? You're the person I'm ready to do anything for. I will protect you by whatever means it takes, if you tell me to actually break the deal with Rose and kill him, I will. I want to do anything it takes to keep you close, Leon.”, the taller male said, his blue eyes narrowing as he looked down into the golden eyes that watched him so intently. “And I mean every word I say. I guess in human terms I should say that I love you, I've loved you ever since you tried to let me stay over at your house back when we were kids.”  
  
Leon blushed and shook his head. “Please don't do anything rash. I'd rather suffer and know that you are safe than have you get hurt.”

Raihan nodded and put his hands on his hips. “As I said, I'll do whatever you want me to.”

“Then, how about a good luck kiss as I head off to talk to Rose about spending the week with you?”, Leon suggested, leaning closer to the taller male daringly.

The Gym Leader grinned and met Leon's Lips with his own, but not before he whispered against them “Coming right up~”

Leon kissed back, a little more enthusiastically than he should have, if the grin he felt against his lips was anything to judge by. They didn't go any further than moving their lips against each other in an almost experimental way though, both shy and inexperienced in this regard. After that, Leon looked up at Raihan and smiled an absolutely cheesy smile, his cheeks adorned by a cute blush. “I love you too, Raihan. I'll be back in a few hours, so try to not fall asleep until then, I know how cranky you get upon being woken up.”  
  
“That is true, you know me very well by now. But don't worry, as long as I don't have a partner to nest with or a spot that smells of them, I don't fall asleep that easily.”, the taller male explained, giving Leon a small peck on the cheek as he saw him out the door.  
  
The shorter male smiled warmly, for the first time in what felt like forever, he genuinely felt happy before heading off to see the chairman. “Alright, then let's hope we can build a nest together later!”

Leon had no idea that it sounded absolutely hot to Raihan, his inner dragon seeming awfully interested in the notion of a nest with a _potential mate_. The Gym Leader was glad that Leon left rather quickly, otherwise he would see the hungry look that Raihan had. After the purple-haired male left, Raihan closed the door and started pacing around nervously. This would be the first time he didn't simply cuddle with his pokemon during this week, so should he prepare something? No, he shouldn't rush things. Leon might not be allowed to spend the week like that anyway, so he should try and calm down.

But he would definitely be more than just angry if Rose denied them that request.

* * *

“So, Raihan asked you to spend the next week with him?”, Rose hummed curiously, turning to look at Leon, who just nodded, expecting to be shot down immediately.

“He said he was nervous and that his pokemon didn't seem to calm him down like they usually do..”

The chairman laughed and clapped his hands in excitement “Splendid! I haven't expected him to reach dragon maturity at this young age, but those are excellent news.”

“Dragon...maturity?”, Leon echoed, thinking of his pokemon, Haxorus and Dragapult. “Like, the age that they can breed at?”

“Exactly.”, Rose said, his eyes narrowing. He approached Leon and put a hand onto the Champion's shoulder, looking directly into those golden eyes. “And it looks like he chose you to be his mate. Not surprising, considering you've been licking each other's wounds for so long now.” - Leon blushed and wanted to ask something else, but Rose interrupted him. “Alright, I shall allow you to nest together, but you will have one order to follow in exchange.”

“An order? What is it, Sir?”, Leon asked, still unsure if he processed that information correctly. Raihan was choosing him as his mate? This was a little much to handle and he hoped that he could talk with the Gym Leader about it and discuss some boundaries. It would be too soon to do anything of that nature, right? Well, they loved each other for so long now, but still, they only confessed it today! His heart was racing and he barely registered what Rose said next over the loud sound of his heartbeat.

“If Raihan's dragon does indeed take control of his actions and he tries to actually _claim you_ , you are to let it happen. I need all the data I can get and this is a splendid opportunity that I wouldn't get otherwise.” The chairman let go of Leon's shoulder and went over to the window front. “Of course, you are also not to tell Raihan about this order or he will try and hold back by any means.”

Leon swallowed, his heart sinking again. He didn't have a say in the matter even though it would be his first time? He was sure that Raihan would hate himself if he knew that Leon was forced to accept it regardless of what he felt. He wasn't even ready to think about sex yet, they have been together for just a few hours now... He racked his brain for an acceptable excuse. Then it hit him, maybe he could get away with that as his reason to decline. “But what if he wants to mark me? You can't have a champion parade around Galar with a hickey on his neck.”

To that, the older male just laughed heartily “Leon, my boy. My makeup team will cover any marks for you like they never existed. You can't possibly think that I naturally look like this at my age of 47?”

“Of course you had a solution to this...”, Leon muttered under his breath and looked down to his feet, defeated. “Isn't there another way to-”

“Leon.”, Rose said, more demanding this time. “Either you stay here and work for me the next week or you let Raihan do whatever he wants with you, that way you get your precious time together and I get my data.” He grinned, looking back out the window. “Of course, I can't guarantee anything if you leave an unstable dragon alone for a whole week. He just _might_ go crazy.”

An implication that Rose would make sure that something would happen if Leon disobeyed now. And the champion knew what Raihan was capable of when the dragon had the upper hand, he saw him break chains, crush walls like it was nothing and so far it always took Leon to calm him down again so Oleana could administer the medicine. There was truly nothing Raihan wanted to live for when Leon was not around and the purple-haired male's heart gave a painful twinge at that. He knew that Raihan cherished the peaceful moments he had with other Gym Leaders and his fans, but Leon also knew that deep down, Raihan feared being around other humans when Leon was not there, fearing to harm them every time Rose changed something in his experiments or gave him a reduced dosage of the medicine.

“I understand, Sir.”, Leon said with a sigh. “I will see you in eight days then.”

Rose nodded and smiled, happy to get his hands on more information about his creation without actually having to do anything himself this time. “I'll take care of the press so that you two won't be disturbed and I will refrain from contacting you as well. I bid you farewell, Leon.”

That almost sounded kind, if Leon didn't know that it was all to further the research that Rose made. He wanted to make Galar the best region of them all and that cause was a noble one, but the way he went about it was all kinds of wrong. Manipulating media, using children as test subjects, forging contracts that would have been illegal if he wasn't the chairman that approved of those contracts in the first place. Raihan was a citizen of Galar as well as Leon and yet their lives apparently didn't seem to matter when all Rose saw was the grand scale of Galar.

The Champion hopped on to Charizard's back once he was outside the building and flew back to Hammerlocke, which he really didn't want to do when he felt so close to crying, but he knew that Raihan would grow suspicious and worried if he were gone for longer than he promised. So, as he landed, he did his best to put up a smile like Rose had trained him to do, returning Charizard to his Pokeball and heading back to Raihan's apartment. With how often he had been here, his body practically moved on autopilot and luckily the streets were fairly empty, so he quickly reached his destination, ready to knock on Raihan's door just to have it open when he barely touched his knuckles to the wood once.

“That was quick.”, Leon said, looking up at Raihan with wide eyes “I'm back with good news!”

Well, that didn't really sound right to Leon. The news were good, yes, but the condition left a bitter aftertaste on his tongue. Would he be able to just keep his mouth shut if it really came down to it or would he break the promise and try to stop Raihan? He stepped inside and let Raihan close the door behind him, so they wouldn't be having this talk while every neighbor could hear them.

“Really? What do you have to do in exchange for a week of freedom with me, sell your soul to the devil?”, Raihan joked bitterly, seeing how Leon's mouth twitched into a smile at the joke before the shorter male let out a laugh.

“You know that Rose's the real devil and we both already sold our souls to him.”, he said half-jokingly and then shook his head and did his best to keep his voice steady as he spoke. “He didn't ask for anything, he said it would be good research material for him since you never spent this period with a human before.” - He was amazed at how smoothly that lie came out. Well, it wasn't fully a lie so maybe that helped.

Raihan's eyes narrowed and he looked at Leon, eyeing him suspiciously. Something seemed off in the way Leon averted his gaze upon saying that. “Leon. Look at me and say that again.”

Leon looked up, ready to repeat the lie, but he flinched when he saw that sharp gaze on him, making him freeze in his place and stutter. “H-He really didn't ask anything. You know he's obsessed with analyzing every aspect of your life, so he wants to run some tests after the week is over and...”

“He forbid you from telling me what he wants.”, Raihan translated what Leon was saying and the shorter male audibly swallowed, making Raihan even angrier. What did Rose ask in exchange? It was his fault for being weak and asking for such an impossible thing as to spend the week with Leon..damn it! Raihan gripped his own hair and pulled at it in frustration. He dragged Leon down with him once again, once again he had become a burden rather than helping his boyfriend like he wanted to. “That bastard really uses you in any way he wants, huh? Why didn't you refuse? I could have just spent the week alone – well, with my pokemon, like I always do. Why are you letting him do things to you just because of me?”

“I won't abandon you like that, Raihan.”, Leon said, leaning forward to let his head rest against Raihan's chest. He was simply exhausted and wanted to turn off all his thoughts about the conversation that he had with the chairman, so he decided to enjoy Raihan's warmth instead. “We are in this together and we'll tough it out together. There's nobody else who can help us in this situation, so don't think I would leave you when you need me just because of some task I have to do in exchange for that.”

Raihan grit his teeth and wrapped his arms around the shorter male's shoulders, holding him close. “You're right and yet it makes me so mad to think that I dragged you into this mess. If we never met, you would--”

“It was only a matter of time before we would meet. Rose planned you to enter the Gym Challenge, I would also be there and no doubt we would have become rivals again with how strong you are. At the _very latest_ we would have met when I would introduce myself to all the Gym Leaders as the champion.”, Leon muttered into Raihan's chest, finally wrapping his arms around the taller male as well. “And I'm glad I met you as soon as I did. I can't stand the thought of you suffering alone, being cut up and shot at month after month just to test your regeneration ability. Being left on the brink of turning into a dragon just to stop your transformation or even to make the dragon-like features recede into your body, hurting you as your bones change shape again and again. I can't stand it, Raihan...”

Leon was trembling and his voice cracked as he recounted everything he had witnessed being done to Raihan by Rose. After all, despite the chairman not forcing him to come down to the laboratory, Leon would often be forced to watch it in some other way. He started crying as he held onto his boyfriend as if his life depended on it, but didn't show his face as if it was some sort of disgrace to cry so much over things that neither of them could change.

The taller male bowed his head down, resting his cheek on top of Leon's head. “Leon..you say that, but I know that he hurt you too. He ordered you to do so many things that you absolutely hated, he humiliated you and broke his promise of not hurting you physically just because I phrased it poorly.”

Leon remembered that moment well, being held down by people he couldn't see the faces of due to them wearing masks, tied down and kicked in front of a camera that he could only assume was broadcast to where Raihan was held by Rose. Ever after discovering that the dragon trainer lost control upon seeing Leon cry, the chairman pushed his boundaries, finding ways of hurt the champion without actually laying a hand on him himself.

“Well, you know how he is...if you say 'don't lay a finger on him', he'll just order someone else to do it and act like he didn't.”, Leon said, shaking his head. He chuckled bitterly as he finally looked up at Raihan and pulled one hand away from the taller male's torso to wipe his own tears. “Hey, wasn't this moment supposed to be happy? We have a whole week to ourselves to simply cuddle in your bed, so why don't we stop moping around, go grocery shopping so we don't have to go out anymore and then start arranging the bed to be as comfy as it possibly can be?”

The taller male smiled a little and gently kissed Leon's forehead. The champion was truly an angel, Raihan would be so lost without him around. “That's why I love you so much. You always move on to positive thoughts, no matter how dire the situation is.”

“If I couldn't do that I doubt I'd be standing here next to you right now. But enough of this. Let's go out, I really want to just lay down and cuddle with you, but I know how you are once you've settled into your nest and I don't want either of us to starve.”, Leon said with a chuckle, clinging to the taller male again.

Raihan hummed and shook his head, picking Leon up and cradling him closer against his chest so Leon's face was above Raihan's. It always amazed Leon how strong Raihan was to be able to do it so effortlessly. “I have a better idea, Leon. Let's go set our nest and we'll simply order food the whole week. Cooking means time that I can't spend cuddling you, after all.”

“You really are something. Though I guess you always liked cuddling the most, even back then you wouldn't set your Goomy down for even a second.”, Leon chuckled and wrapped his arms around the taller male's neck, letting Raihan carry him to the bedroom and set him down on the bed.

“But it's even better when it's you, Leon.”, the dragon trainer said, rummaging in his closet to get out some more casual clothes for his boyfriend. “I'll get you something more comfy to wear, hold on.”

'As a bonus, it'll make you smell of me', the dragon part of his brain added, but the Gym Leader held back from saying that. It would be way too much way too fast. Why were his instincts acting up this much, anyway? This was just another week of cuddling and sleep and it was only the start of the week, but something felt off. His body was so warm even though he was usually getting cold easily. Something was different this time around, but Raihan couldn't quite put his finger on it since he never felt this way before.

He pulled out a shirt and some shorts for Leon, handing the two garments to him with a sweet smile. “Here you go. I'm not that much taller than you are, so they should fit you pretty well.”

“Thank you. Where should I leave my clothes? I read somewhere that foreign scents can be distressing for dragons, so..”, Leon saw that Raihan seemed taken aback by that and tilted his head in confusion. “Was the info wrong?”

“No, but I didn't expect you to read up on such things...”, the taller male said, blushing a little. Leon was really set on taking care of him, huh? That made Raihan incredibly happy. “You aren't _foreign_ though, so you can just leave them next to the bed”

_Just in case he wanted to surround himself with that amazing scent._

God, that sounded perverted from a human standpoint. But if Leon read up on the topic, he surely read things that were way more 'unacceptable' by human standards. When Leon took off the cape and draped it over the chair next to the bed, Raihan took this as his cue to turn away and give Leon some privacy.

“You don't have to turn around, you've seen me change before, haven't you?”, Leon said, pulling his shirt over his head, neatly folding it as well.

Raihan grumbled, but still didn't turn around. “It's true, but I don't want to rush things and I know how hot you look, so it's best to be safe.”

Leon chuckled a little and continued changing - this man was just too pure at times. But it only made him worry more about what Rose said. What would happen if Raihan suddenly had an urge to claim him? Would he still hesitate or would he give in to his primal instincts?

“Thank you for saying that. You look really good too, the fans would probably have a heart attack if they saw you without that hoodie of yours.”, Leon said as he changed into the shorts that Raihan gave him, folding them and putting everything onto the chair. “I'm done~”

The taller male turned around and sat on the bed next to Leon, pulling him into a hug. “I wonder how many heart attacks you have caused with that tight shirt of yours, Champ?”, he purred into Leon's ear, which caused the purple-haired male to giggle.

“Well, you are seeing me up close and you're yet to have a heart attack, so I'd say I'm fine!”, Leon joked, nudging Raihan in the side. “But you're still wearing a hoodie, so can't say I wouldn't faint upon seeing you without it.”

That flirtatious humor was exactly up Raihan's alley. “Better have 911 on speed dial if I decide it's too warm for a hoodie, huh?”

“And tissues for all the blood coming from my nose, you know, like in those cartoons.”, Leon laughed, wiping away a tear that built up in the corner of his eye from all the laughter. “Geez, we're such dorks.”

Raihan let out a fake gasp “We've been friends for over a decade and you only notice that now? No wonder Sonia calls you air-headed!”

“Hey, that's mean..”, Leon pouted, poking Raihan's side, to which the taller male let out a squeak. “Oh, ticklish, are we?”, Leon purred with a cheeky grin, poking the same place again and again and making the dragon trainer laugh uncontrollably.

Raihan seemed to have enough and grabbed Leon's wrists, pushing him down onto the bed as he tried to regain his breath, panting heavily from all the laughter. “Got you. That'll teach you to never tickle a dragon!”

Due to the playful mood Raihan was in, he didn't realize how compromising the position they were in was. Leon immediately went quiet however, a blush spreading on his cheeks when he saw just how strong Raihan was. He had seen it before by the way Raihan effortlessly picked him up, sometimes with just one arm, but this was something completely different. He tried to move his wrists, but the taller male had a steel grip on them and wouldn't budge.

“R-Rai, I give! Please let go.”, he said with a small whine and only then did Raihan see how wrong that position was. He couldn't deny that something stirred within him, the same primal feeling returning and it was terrifying to think of it getting any stronger.

Raihan felt as if he was losing sense of who he was and he quickly let go like touching Leon had burned him, holding his hands up as if to show that he wouldn't do that again. “I'm sorry, I didn't mean to--”

“I know, Rai. You've been too carried away and it was my fault for teasing you. But it's all fine, so come lay down with me?”, the shorter male offered in a soft voice and patted the spot next to him, trying to defuse the situation somehow.  
  
The taller male's face melted into a smile again as Leon spoke to him so gently and he was quick to lay down and pull Leon closer by the waist. He loved the warmth their bodies shared as they cuddled like this and it caused him to purr out happily, shifting around a little to get more comfortable on the bed. He pressed his nose to Leon's hair and inhaled deeply, the scent both calming and reassuring him that it was really alright.

“Leon, thank you.”, Raihan purred happily, closing his eyes in content. “If you get hungry, wake me up and I'll call the delivery service, okay?”

“Alright, sleep well, Rai.”, Leon said, leaning his head onto Raihan's chest and closing his own eyes as well.

It's been a while since Leon was allowed to simply nap during the evening and it was quite the nice change from his stressful everyday life. More than that, it was the first time Leon could spend such a long period of time with Raihan, even if the taller male would most likely be asleep for the most of it. Then again, Leon was sure that with the soft mattress underneath him, the warmth of Raihan's body beside him and with him being able to mute his phone for a whole week, he would spend the time in a similar fashion.

With the two of them falling asleep like that began their first-ever nesting week together.


	5. I'm Burning Up (And You'll Burn Too)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey so...kind of Dubcon warning at the beginning.  
> Also idk how smut works so forgive me.  
> As much as I like fluff, here is some spicy stuff.

The first four days went by uneventfully, with Raihan just lazily cuddling Leon, barely awake for long enough to order food for them both before going straight back to cuddling. They even ate in Raihan's bed, with the taller male's arms around Leon's waist and his head resting on the Champion's shoulder. This position made it so Leon had to feed his boyfriend, but he didn't seem to mind, in fact it was rather cute that the dragon trainer was so clingy and sleepy all the time. The two of them only let go of each other when they absolutely had to, when Raihan went to get the food he ordered (since it would raise a lot of questions if Leon opened the door) or the short trips to the bathroom that they had to inevitably make.

This was such a cozy and gentle atmosphere that Leon almost forgot about the promise he made to Rose, feeling like it wouldn't ever come down to it with Raihan being so sleepy. He wasn't complaining, since he really enjoyed the simple cuddles and lazy kisses they shared while they were both awake. Of course, the purple-haired male couldn't sleep as much as Raihan did, so he occupied himself with his phone whenever the Gym Leader was asleep, reading up on magazine articles and some e-books that he had been dying to read but couldn't because of his busy schedule. It was really feeling more like a vacation than him helping Raihan and Leon enjoyed every second of it.

That was, until the fifth day rolled around. It started like any other day, with them eating sandwiches for breakfast – the only difference being that Raihan didn't seem as hungry as he usually was, nuzzling into the nape of Leon's neck instead of eating for the most part. Leon didn't think much about it and they curled up into one another after breakfast like they usually did. Leon was ready to see Raihan fall asleep and go back to reading the book he was in the middle of, but the dragon Gym Leader's eyes remained open, staring into Leon's own eyes with an intensity that the champion had never seen before.

The shorter of the two swallowed audibly upon seeing his boyfriend look at him like that, before he finally found his voice again. “Can't sleep?”

“No, Leon – I can't.”, Raihan growled out and pulled the purple-haired male flush against his own body, never breaking eye contact with him.

Only when they laid close like this did Leon finally feel how hot Raihan's body was, even through the fabric of his clothes it felt like the taller male was burning up, so naturally Leon raised his hand and touched Raihan's forehead, just to feel the same intense heat.

“You're burning up! Did you catch a cold?” - it wouldn't be surprising since Raihan got cold easily anyway - “Hold on, I'll get you some medicine!”, Leon said, pulling away and almost getting up, only to be pulled back in by his waist this time so they ended up spooning with Raihan's chest pressed up against the shorter male's back.

The champion was about to protest, say that he couldn't just leave the fever like that, but Raihan cut him off with a growl. “Don't leave the nest, I need you here.”

This sounded like a command, a threat not to move from this very spot and Leon understood why. This was exactly what the chairman was talking about – Raihan was getting ready to claim the mate that he spent the better part of his nesting period with. The taller male wanted to keep Leon there by any means necessary. The hold on his waist got stronger, almost to the point of bruising, and Leon let out a whimper of pain.

“Rai, I won't leave. Just...loosen your grip a little, okay?”, he offered, gently stroking the arms that held him close.

He was glad that it seemed to work, the taller male letting out a huff of approval as he relaxed the grip again, but still held Leon close and growled into his ear possessively “You're mine, right, Leon?”

The champion had to swallow at that. He was threading a thin line right now, he should choose his words carefully. Who knew what the dragon would do if he didn't give a satisfactory answer?

No, that's wrong, he trusted Raihan. He wouldn't be one of the people that saw the man as nothing than a monster. He loved the Gym Leader for everything he was, both human and dragon. Leon still wasn't sure that he was ready for whatever would happen next, but he chose to accept it regardless. It was still _his Raihan_. The gentle, clumsy, somewhat arrogant man that he fell in love with.

“I'm yours, Raihan.”, Leon assured.

The happy purr that followed was more than enough to dispel Leon's worries, allowing him to finally relax into Raihan's embrace and close his eyes, enjoying the warmth that the dragon leader's body emitted. The champion tilted his head back to enjoy the warmth a little more, unaware that he had bared his neck in doing so, a common gesture of submission and an invitation to the mating partner among the dragons. Leon should have paid more attention to what he did, he should know that the gesture would be immediately picked up on by Raihan, especially after Leon saying that he belonged to him, but he didn't.

He only realized what he had done once it was too late, screaming out in pain upon feeling those sharp teeth sink into the side of his neck, breaking the skin there. And Raihan didn't let go of the shorter male's neck even as Leon squirmed around and tried to get away, intent on making the mark last long and possibly even leave a scar to prove that the champion belonged to him.

“R-Rai, please--”, the purple-haired male begged, tried to grip the black hair and pull the man away, but he wouldn't budge. Instead of pulling away from his boyfriend's neck, Raihan moved one hand under Leon's shirt, touching his pecs and giving them a squeeze.

This drew a soft gasp from the champion and Leon quickly bit his tongue again and removed the hand from the taller male's hair, remembering what the chairman ordered him to do. He had to let it happen, he had to accept what Raihan did, no matter how much it hurt when the taller male latched onto his neck like he was his prey. He decided to make the best of the situation and focused on the touches Raihan left on his chest instead of the sharp pain on his neck.

The Gym Leader played with his nipples, pinching and teasing them between his fingers, making Leon moan softly. Leon couldn't help arching his back, his ass pressing against Raihan's already hard member and drawing a moan from the taller male that finally caused him to let go of the patch of skin he was holding between his teeth, licking over the wound in an almost apologizing manner.

“Rai..”, Leon breathed out, shivering in the taller male's arms, the contrast of the rough bite and the gentle lick sending a wave of pleasure through his body and straight to his half-hard cock. The ministrations on his chest didn't stop either, instead Raihan just pinched the two buds again, drawing another moan from the champion.

The sound seemed to only rile the taller male up further, another growl tearing from his throat as he let go of the pink buds in favor of gripping at the shirt Leon was wearing, about to tear it to shreds when Leon put his hands on top of Raihan's and quickly pulled the article of clothing over his own head, tossing it aside. The taller male admired the view of the champion's bare torso, toned and sculpted perfectly. If Raihan could still control himself, he would say out loud how sexy Leon was, but in his current state all he could do was to just lean down and start marking the skin on his chest, once again pinning Leon's wrists down as he did.

The only thoughts running through Raihan's brain was to _claim what's his._

In any other circumstance, Leon would protest and try to get free to have some semblance of control, but he remained silent save for the moans that spilled from his lips, allowing himself to be swallowed by the intense feeling of heat that overcame him. He had been scared that the first time with Raihan would be ruined and not enjoyable because he was forced to allow it to happen and because he feared that Raihan would behave more like an animal and skip straight to sex. However, with the way his boyfriend _worshiped_ his body by peppering it with kisses and love bites that worry was soon blown away. Leon melted into the touches, letting out soft moans and keen mewls at the sensation, which encouraged Raihan to continue.

Even with the way Raihan took full control and moved Leon's body in a way that he needed, Leon didn't mind it, knowing that his boyfriend wouldn't actually hurt him. Raihan also seemed to learn that Leon didn't want the clothes to get damaged, so once the kisses reached the purple-haired male's abdomen, Raihan withdrew his hands from Leon's wrists to tug off the shorts and boxers after which he also stripped. Leon's eyes were half-lidded and dark with lust as he watched the taller male take off his clothing, revealing the toned body that was obscured by the hoodie most of the time. Raihan was really muscular and handsome, his dark skin shimmering from sweat. Leon noticed that there were scars littered all over his torso from the decade-long abuse by Rose, clearly visible due to the scar tissue being a few shades brighter than Raihan's skin.

The shorter male couldn't help himself as he reached out and gently ran his fingertips across a scar on Raihan's chest, biting his lip at the way the muscles tensed under his fingers. He looked up to meet Raihan's gaze, only to see the taller male look down at him hungrily. Leon couldn't help but blush , not breaking eye contact even when he saw Raihan pull down his shorts and underwear in one fell swoop.

That seemed to be all that the dragon trainer needed to completely lose it. He took a hold of Leon's wrist again, pulling on it to flip the purple-haired male over so that his back was facing him. Leon scrambled to his hands and knees, looking back at Raihan, not expecting the Gym Leader's face to be just inches away from his own, just waiting for Leon to turn around so that he could kiss his boyfriend on the lips. Raihan's teeth got caught on Leon's lip, making the shorter male hiss a little and part his lips to avoid tearing his lip open, which Raihan took as an invitation to deepen the kiss. The dragon's tongue slipped into Leon's mouth, brushing against the underside of Leon's tongue and the champion moaned at how hot the appendage felt in his mouth, how Raihan's chest pressed against his back and just how desperate the taller male seemed.

Leon moved one hand away from the mattress, moving it up to tangle in Raihan's hair as they kissed, both needy and eager. Leon's tongue moved against Raihan's and the kiss was everything but gentle with the way their teeth sometimes clicked together in the heat of the moment. Leon soon had to pull away though, the lack of oxygen forcing him to break the kiss, putting the hand that was in Raihan's hair back down for support as he panted heavily.

Raihan wasn't about to give him a break though, biting down on his shoulder and sucking on the spot to leave further marks on the canvas that was Leon's body. It was as if he wanted to scream out to the world that Leon belonged to him and nobody else, that everyone else had to back off from making advances at the champion. Raihan's fingers meanwhile moved to touch Leon's member, stroking it with determined, quick strokes.

The champion was reduced to a moaning, trembling mess, his mind unable to form a coherent thought between the blissful feeling on his dick and the sharp teeth still relentlessly biting his back and the nape of his neck. He knew he wouldn't hold out much longer if this continued and Raihan seemed eager to get him off, seeing as he started rubbing over the sensitive tip every time his hand slid up the shaft.

“Rai-- aah!”, Leon moaned breathlessly, his arms giving in as the stimulation became too much to handle. He collapsed onto his forearms, his ass grinding against Raihan once more, to which the dragon let out a dangerous snarl. The sound was all that Leon needed to come for the first time, not even able to warn his boyfriend due to completely forgetting how words worked.

His orgasm was so intense that he had to rest his head on his forearms, drooling a little onto the bed sheets below him. He trembled and panted heavily, but Raihan wasn't done with him yet. The taller male coated his fingers in Leon's own come, using it as a substitute for lube as he pushed a finger inside Leon's hole, to which the champion let out a whine, still not recovered after his climax. Raihan halted his moves as he realized that Leon was uncomfortable, but the purple-haired male shook his head at the worried gaze that Raihan gave him.

“Go on, it doesn't hurt”, he reassured. And it wasn't a lie, he was just a tad oversensitive, so everything felt very intense.

Raihan seemed to understand, continuing his movements gently despite his urges and kissing along Leon's shoulders instead of biting down again. Leon honestly wasn't sure if the dragon was even in control anymore with how caring his boyfriend went about preparing him, but he wasn't about to ask that and ruin the moment. Instead he focused on the pleasant feeling of Raihan's lips against his skin so he wouldn't tense around Raihan's fingers when the second digit slipped inside. A moan tore from Leon's throat as the digits moved around inside of him, scissoring and stretching him to fit in another one and then a fourth. Leon was so grateful that Raihan didn't rush it, he didn't know if he could handle being fucked unprepared, especially with how big Raihan was. His moans got louder and he started moving back onto the fingers, meeting Raihan's movements with his own until he felt a jolt of electricity run through his body, making him scream out in pleasure.

“Raihan, please!”, Leon begged in an ecstatic voice, his member fully erect again despite him having just come. He was completely gone in the sensation, not caring how desperate he sounded. “Fuck me already...”

The dragon chuckled a little and pulled out his fingers, kissing the dark red bite mark that he left on Leon's neck before biting down on it again, reopening the wound as he thrust into Leon in one swift motion, burying himself to the hilt in one smooth movement. Leon's eyes widened as he screamed out once again. It was painful and yet Leon's member twitched in interest, surprising the champion. He never knew he had it in him to enjoy such a painful sensation.

Raihan growled, the sound muffled by Leon's skin, as he started moving in and out, rocking his hips quickly as he fucked Leon with abandon. More filthy sounds filled the room, their skin slapping against each other and a wet squelching sound resounding every time Raihan thrust into his boyfriend. Though, those two sounds were only audible between Leon's screams of pleasure as Raihan hit his prostate every single time without fail. Determined to make Leon absolutely lose his mind, the Gym Leader moved a hand to Leon's member, stroking it again in the same quick rhythm as his thrusts.

“R-Rai..!”, Leon stuttered out, as if he completely forgot how to speak. His arms now completely gave up on holding his upper body as they collapsed under him, Leon's chest rubbing against the sheets with every snap of Raihan's hips, stimulating him even further with all the pain from the love bites on his chest blooming anew as the sheets brushed against them. He knew he would come again very soon, he felt like his body was on fire being stimulated from so many angles. And Raihan didn't help it, not letting go of his neck even once, latched onto it like his life depended on it, but still very careful not to deepen the wound to avoid lasting damage.

Leon rocked his own hips back, meeting Raihan's thrusts and all it took was an especially hard thrust against his prostate to make the champion come again. Leon saw stars and his head felt like it was filled with cotton, he barely registered himself screaming out Raihan's name, his vision fading to white as he was on the verge of passing out from coming twice in such a short period of time.

Raihan came inside of Leon, only letting go of his neck once he was done, pulling out of Leon and laying down next to him, exhausted. He pulled Leon closer, cuddling him as they both came down from the post-climax high, breathing heavily and being completely silent otherwise. The taller male's mind became more and more clear as his breathing evened out and suddenly the realization of what he did to Leon set in. He pushed the champion aside again, ignoring the groan of protest that his boyfriend let out as he gave him a once-over.

His abdomen was sticky with come, his chest littered in marks and his lip cracked open from where Raihan's tooth got caught on it. Even worse than all of this though was the dark red and still bleeding bite mark on the purple-haired male's neck, which would no doubt take a while to heal properly and even then, Raihan was absolutely sure that it would leave a scar.

“Fuck...Leon, I'm sorry.”, the taller male said, gently brushing Leon's hair out of his face. “I'll clean you up and bandage up your neck, hold on.”

The Gym Leader was about to get up and rush off, but Leon grabbed his wrist to hold him back. “Hey, didn't you tell me not to leave the nest? Come lay back down, Rai. You didn't do anything wrong, it felt really good.”

Sure, Leon would never had imagined his first time to be so _intense_ , but he was so happy that Raihan was still careful not to hurt him. Leon didn't feel traumatized or violated like he feared he would when Rose gave him the order to just let Raihan do whatever he wanted to his body. He felt sore, but he was completely satisfied and just...happy to have his boyfriend next to him. He didn't want to ever leave Raihan's side, no matter what.

“Who knew that the dragon inside you is just as much of a softy as you are.”, Leon teased and leaned in to give Raihan a kiss. It wasn't a lie, Leon wasn't feeling any pain except from the bite on his neck.

Raihan returned the kiss, but smiled at Leon bitterly. “You're kidding, right? You have bite marks all over your skin.”

“Don't tell me you wouldn't bite me if you were fully in control of your actions, because I don't believe that for one second.”, the champion said with a cheeky grin, to which Raihan blushed a dark red and looked away.

“Guilty as charged.”, the taller male nodded, mumbling abashedly. He was very possessive of Leon, no matter the circumstance.

Leon giggled and pressed up closer to Raihan's chest. “Then your sentence is to cuddle with me for the rest of the day.”

Raihan finally smiled genuinely again, wrapping his arms around Leon's waist and closing his eyes as he rested his chin on top of Leon's head and pulled the covers over them both. “Yes, your honor. That's a sentence I'll gladly serve.”


	6. Dragon Rage

Two days later Leon had to go back to Postwick, since he had promised his mother and Hop to visit them, but when he looked at himself in the mirror, he knew there was no way he could go out with a mark like this - to which Raihan apologized again and again, but Leon stood by his point that it wasn't Raihan's fault and that he had a plan in mind. A plan that he didn't like since it involved calling Rose, but a plan nonetheless. He dialed the cursed number and the chairman picked up just after three rings, his cheerful voice on the other end of the line pissing Leon off. But he knew better than to get impatient, so he let the man talk before he finally voiced his request, making sure that Raihan was in the bathroom and wouldn't hear it.

“I did as you said, but now I am in dire need of a makeup team. My hair won't cover that big of a mark.”, the champion said truthfully, hearing the man laugh bemusedly at the other end, which pissed him off even more. “Yes, I'm still at Raihan's apartment. Thank you, Sir.”

Leon hung up after being told that a makeup artist would come by within the hour, leaving Leon enough time to get everything else about himself looking pristine. He combed his hair and got dressed, using some of Raihan's cologne, to which the dragon trainer looked at him gleefully.

“Now you smell like me for the rest of the day!”, Raihan said, grinning like a child on Christmas.

Leon was glad that he could make his boyfriend happy so easily, making a mental note to get the cologne for himself in the future since smelling like Raihan made him happy as well. It was like taking a part of his boyfriend wherever he went, it was reassuring to him. He started understanding Raihan's need to be around a familiar scent more and more.

The makeup artist arrived in just thirty minutes, Leon greeting the man with his usual bright smile and the two of them quickly made their way inside to cover up the mark which was so obviously left on Leon's neck by Raihan since nobody else had such sharp teeth in the Galar region. Still, the man swore that this info was confidential and that he was contractually obligated to Rose to keep it a secret. Leon was absolutely sure that Rose had threatened the man , promising to ruin his life in some way as well should anyone find out that the two were dating. Not that anyone would notice that mark with how well it was concealed under layers and layers of makeup – it was truly impressive. The champion thanked the man and saw him out before turning to Raihan.

“Well, seems like I'm all set now. I will get going so I'm not late to the meeting with my brother.”, Leon said to his boyfriend, giving him a soft peck on his cheek. “Stay strong and text me when you get out of Rose Tower, alright?”

“I will, provided I'm still alive by then.”, Raihan joked bitterly. He didn't want to go to the chairman, much less so when it was the first time in years that he would go there alone.

Leon frowned and kissed Raihan again. “If he hurts you beyond repair, I'm going to personally set fire to everything he owns.”

“Thanks. Now get going, Hop will assume you got lost on your way otherwise.”, the dragon trainer teased to hide his still lingering fear, ushering Leon out before he changed his mind and just kept the man with him forever. “I'll see..no, I'll text you later.”

Leon made his way out of the building with a heavy heart...damn Rose for only allowing him to visit his family on the weekend when Raihan had to come in for his medicine. He had tried to offer the Gym Leader that he would stay and maybe visit his family some other time so he could come with him to Rose Tower like he usually would, but Raihan told him he shouldn't sacrifice his family for him.  
  
Now Leon wished he did though. So his mind wasn't really fully there as he released his Charizard out of his ball and mounted him to fly over to his hometown. He met a lot of fans at the train station in Wedgehurst, where he landed so he could meet up with Hop and his new best friend Victor, putting on his signature smile like he was trained to. He promised his brother and Victor a present, planning on giving them both a starter pokemon, but it seemed that his brother was a step ahead of him. His brother already had a Wooloo on his team when he was presented with the three pokemon. Hop ended up choosing Grookey, Victor chose Scorbunny, leaving Sobble behind to get picked up by Leon again. He was glad that the two teens were happy with their Pokemon and he intended to help them take the first steps to becoming proper pokemon trainers while he was in his hometown.

He helped them get the Pokedex, showed them how to catch Pokemon and finally led them to professor Magnolia, who pushed him to endorse them both for the Gym Challenge that would be starting in a few weeks. Leon was reluctant to do so at first, but seeing how happy Hop seemed with the idea to be able to partake in such an event, he had little choice but to give both him and Victor his letter of endorsement.

His own feelings were always put on the backburner when he knew that he could make others happy. Just after helping the two new trainers of his hometown get started, he dove headfirst straight into work again, making sure that the Gym Challenge was running smoothly. He helped Gym Leaders set up their challenges, greeted the registered challengers all the while doing the tasks that were entrusted to him by the Chairman. He ran himself ragged by working so much, but the people were happy with everything he did and Leon saw this as his duty to keep them happy and excited throughout the duration of the Gym Challenge.

Leon gave everything for the people of Galar in the next months, protecting them from rabid Dynamax Pokemon when Rose experimented around, fulfilling small tasks for the people he met in the city and being kind to everyone he met, regardless of their backstory. He was loved and respected by pretty much every person in the region because of his selflessness and Leon was happy that he was known for being kind above everything else, proudly wearing the title of champion even as the Gym Challenge season was drawing to a close.

This all changed soon, however. Rose asked him for an urgent meeting just when he was about to go eat out with his brother and the finalist Victor. He knew better than to decline that due to the contract they had, so he went to Rose Tower, heading up to the top floor, where he was to meet the chairman.

“I'm glad you took time out of your day to meet me, Leon.”, the older male said, as if Leon had any choice.

The champion tried not to scowl at Rose. Instead he put up a smile that he was trained to wear. “Of course, Sir. What is it that you need?”

Rose didn't turn around, staring out to the region of Galar spreading below, which was a cue for Leon to come closer and look down as well. Only then did the chairman continue to speak. “Look at the glorious region of Galar, Leon. I'm sure you know that I love this region above everything else and I know you love it almost as much.”

“That's right. I am ready to help the people of Galar wherever I can. Even if our ideals are different, are goals are similar.”, Leon genuinely agreed with Rose for the first time in his life.

“Great. Then I believe you will understand me when I say that I would hate for this region to be extinct when the Darkest Day arrives in a millennium and all our energy will be depleted.”, Rose said, finally looking at Leon. “I want you to help me prevent that.”

Leon raised an eyebrow, unsure of how he could do this. He heard vague hints about the Darkest Day, but was never able to grasp the full picture here, mostly due to being swamped with work. “Sonia told me that there was a legend about two heroes preventing the Darkest Day from happening, well technically the Darkest Day happened, but they stopped it...”, he said what he did know, which wasn't much, so he was glad when Rose took over again.

“And those heroes will be you and me, of course. I have all the means necessary to summon the creature that caused this calamity and I want you to catch it and thereby prevent it from doing any harm ever again. Of course, this will also allow us to control it and make it supply Galar with energy forever.”, the chairman crossed his arms behind his back, looking at Leon with pure determination burning in his eyes despite his gaze being as calm as usual. “I suggest we head to Hammerlocke Gym tomorrow and get this started.”

The purple-haired male looked at his superior incredulously. Was this man really about to do it on the day of the finals? “I have a final match to attend tomorrow, Sir. Everyone in Galar is waiting for it to happen and you know it. If you are sure that your plan will work, we can do it after the match is over.”

“You really dare talk back to me, especially when Galar's future is at stake here? Truly, I am disappointed in you, Leon.”, the chairman clicked his tongue and shook his head, looking back out the window. “You _just_ said that you would do whatever you can for Galar.”

Leon grit his teeth. This was getting ridiculous and it infuriated him. “I'm not saying I won't do it, but we have a thousand years before it happens! You and I will both be dead by then, so I'm sure your plan can wait a day. Now excuse me, but my brother is probably sick with worry and-”

“Leon!” Hop's voice resounded behind the two men and when they turned around, they saw that Victor was with him too.“I was worried when you didn't show. What's this all about?”

Rose smiled like he always did, not revealing anything to the champion's brother. “Don't worry about it. Just two adults bickering because their pride gets in the way. Won't you two go on ahead? I promise that Leon will be with you in just a moment, we are just about done here.”

“Aw man, we just got here...”, Hop whined a little, but smiled back at the chairman nonetheless - the same bright smile Rose saw Leon wear when he became the champion thirteen years ago. “Well, don't keep him for too long, okay? My brother works really hard as is!”

The chairman nodded and watched the two teens leave before he turned back to Leon and his eyes grew cold again. “Let me present you with a simple choice.. You can leave here and be stubborn like you said you would or you can accept to come with me to Hammerlocke tomorrow before you leave.”, he took a step closer to Leon and his lips formed a smile again, but his words were pure venom. “If you pick the former though, you might regret it.”

Leon bit his lip. His mother would be sitting in the stadium with Hop tomorrow, so Rose couldn't hurt them without making it obvious. Raihan was strong enough to fight whoever Rose might send after him, so he should be fine - hopefully. Frankly, he was done with the vague threats and the absolute madness that Rose threw his way, so without a further word, the champion turned on his heel and left for the elevator, going down with Hop and Victor.

Rose's smile fell and he shook his head, adjusting his tie to hide his anger. “Wrong choice.”

* * *

And Rose was right that Leon would regret not going along with his plan or spending more time trying to convince the chairman to delay it. His match with Victor got interrupted by the chairman's message that he would bring about the darkest day, the Wyndon stadium becoming a den for Dynamax Pokemon out of nowhere, the red beam of light that burst through the floor was an indication of that and as Leon checked his phone, he saw that every power spot was becoming unstable. The staff evacuated the people, ushering them out. Leon knew he had to stop this madness somehow and he had to act quickly - so he hurried to Hammerlocke, glad to see Raihan already at work evacuating the people there. As the Gym Leader saw Leon, he hurried to his boyfriend with a confused look on his face, but before he could get out even the tiniest sound Leon yelled as he rushed past him.

“No time--- just come up to the power plant when you're done!”

Raihan was even more confused, but determined to help Leon now more than ever, so he decided to hurry the evacuation along, quickly carrying the people that were too old to move fast over to the tunnel that lead to Spikemuth before he left the rest to his assistants.

“Camilla, Sebastian, Aria. I have trained you myself, so I know I can trust you.” - the three nodded in understanding. “I will go help Leon now. You lead the people to Spikemuth and talk to Piers about shelter. I'm counting on you.”

With that said, the Gym Leader dashed back to his Gym and into the power plant located inside, where he saw Rose. The sight of the chairman's smug grin made him absolutely furious.

“You--!”, he growled, approaching the chairman with his fangs bared, ready to wrestle the man down.

Rose remained calm, raising both his hands up as if he was surrendering. “Hey, now. Is this any time for you to be angry at me? Shouldn't you go help Leon up on the roof?”

Raihan hated to admit that the man was right. Oh well, he could still kick his ass later. “Fine. Don't think you're off the hook yet.”

“I don't, but I will have to ask you to come over here for a moment before you rush upstairs. I will give you the medicine now so you don't go berserk and turn into a dragon – you seem really angry.”, the shorter male offered, showing Raihan that he had a syringe prepared, contained in a plastic tube to prevent contamination.

The dragon rolled his eyes at the statement since it was Rose's damn fault that he was so angry in the first place, but he still came closer and let the man insert the syringe into his neck by leaning down to him. As soon as the content was emptied into his bloodstream, Raihan pulled back again and rushed to the rooftop. For some reason he didn't feel calmer at all, rather the contrary. However, he just blamed it on the adrenaline rush due to his worry for Leon and pressed onward, praying to God that his boyfriend was alright.

When he got up on the roof, he saw Leon about to throw the Pokeball, with Hop and Victor standing behind him in anticipation. So then...was everything resolved? He approached the three people standing on the rooftop and watched as Leon threw the Pokeball. His muscles stiffened as he watched the pokeball wiggle, time seemingly slowing down as he saw Charizard hurry and cover the two teens and Raihan, before the ball burst open and Leon was knocked back, sliding all the way across the roof and stopping right in front of Raihan's feet. The dragon trainer looked down and his eyes widened in shock.

The time seemed to freeze now and Raihan felt his blood boil in his veins as he saw Leon's unconscious and bloodied up form lay by his feet. Leon-- _his_ Leon was hurt because of that thing there in the sky. He felt something drip down his own forehead just under the bandanna, he felt the familiar splitting pain run through in his whole body...but he didn't care to stop himself - he couldn't stop himself from his mind shutting down completely. His hoodie and shirt burst at their seams as his wings sprouted from his back, his bandanna got torn off by a sharp horn piercing through it and a tail grew from his lower back. His own skin got torn up where the appendages had grown, leaving Raihan looking just as bloodied up as Leon – but the man had shown no signs of backing down.

The dragon let out a loud roar, his pokemon all breaking from their Pokeballs at once, swarming Eternatus together with Raihan. Flygon and Raihan were attacking it from the air and the rest of the Pokemon joined them on the ground, giving it all they got. In all the commotion, Raihan completely disregarded everything else – Hop's distressed scream upon seeing such a horrific scene unfold, Victor's attempt at getting Hop to help fight Eternatus... and the Rotom Drone that appeared out of seemingly nowhere, making its rounds to film the scene.

Raihan breathed in deeply as he faced Eternatus, breathing out a blue flame that left the pokemon with a severe burn. The Gym Leader attacked relentlessly – scratching, kicking and burning the Pokemon, making Eternatus go down in mere seconds. But Raihan knew that it was too early to celebrate yet. The creature became enraged instead of fainting and transformed into something more massive, merging with the sky as a storm lifted up the debris from the roof and violently flung it around, making everything look like it was about to be blown to pieces.

“What're you standing around for?”, Raihan growled at the two teenagers after which he set off another fire breath towards Eternatus. He didn't do any damage despite both him and his Pokemon all attacking together, like the creature completely ignored the damage that was being dealt to it. Raihan was getting annoyed by the inactivity of the two people who beat his gym in no time, thinking that they only had a chance if they all attacked at once. It was insulting to him that the two teens didn't take action until he had called them out of their stupor.

Only when he called out to them did the two join in, but their attacks also didn't seem to have any effect. The creature healed all the wounds it received in mere seconds like they were never there. That was when Hop had the idea to use the relics and call upon the two legendary heroes, giving Raihan the sign that the four of them could handle it without his help after Zachien landed a hit that finally damaged the creature.

The dragon huffed and landed on the ground again, kneeling next to Leon. He just wanted to guard his boyfriend right now. Protect him from any other damage that might come his way. He spread his wings and covered as much of Leon's body as he could, cradling the limp body in his arms and smiling sadly at him. He couldn't think of anything else other than protecting the purple-haired male, that's why it came as a surprise when he felt a bullet enter his right shoulder.

He growled and turned around, seeing that people have gathered around him – policemen, pokemon enthusiasts..all of them were people of Hammerlocke that Raihan had previously helped evacuate – they were back just for the reason that Raihan turned into a dragon. They all held some sort of weapon as they stared at him like he was an absolute abomination. The dragon still held onto Leon as he listened to the people yell at him.

“W-What a monster!”

“You hurt Leon, how dare you!”  
  
“Let him go right now, you fiend!”

Raihan wanted to ignore the shouts of the people and just fly away together with Leon, but he knew that the shorter male urgently needed medical attention and if he just kidnapped Leon like that, he would be at risk of hurting the man he loved or even losing him completely. The policemen haven't dropped their weapons yet, ready to shoot at him again – it was impossible to safely fly away with Leon like this. So, the dragon did the only rational thing he could, even if it broke his heart to do so. He set Leon down to the ground again and with a strong beat of his wings, he flew up, growling loudly as the police shot him again and again in a desperate attempt to get him out of the air, some bullets hitting and some missing.

The Gym Leader's pokemon were quick to follow their trainer, most returning to their balls in the pocket of Raihan's shorts while Flygon flew behind Raihan, the two dragons leaving the area quickly. The dragon trainer tried to keep his pained noises to a minimum as he flew over Hammerlocke to the wild area. He didn't want to be discovered again, at least not that quickly. Luckily the people would be preoccupied with getting Leon to the hospital and maybe helping the two kids battle Eternatus. Though, with the two legendary pokemon battling alongside them, there barely was anyone more qualified to help them.

He made sure that nobody followed him and landed in an area where a sandstorm was raging right now, so that no sane person would dare and look for him there. He found a cave to hide in so he wouldn't get buffed by the storm too much, curling up on the ground there. It wasn't really comfortable, but Raihan would make do – it wasn't the first time he slept out in the wilds and he couldn't just return to his apartment. After all, he was sure that the people would search it first, they wouldn't give up until Raihan was either dead or captured – just like Rose had said, he was just a monster in the eye of the public..

“Flygon, come here..”, Raihan said tiredly and his pokemon hurried to his side so that the two of them could curl into one another and cuddle for both warmth and protection.

It wasn't nearly as calming as cuddling with Leon, but the dragon trainer knew that he most likely would never get to see Leon again except for the screen of his phone – and even then, he couldn't let his phone signal be discovered. He started crying, listening to Flygon try and calm him down by cooing at him gently. It didn't work, but Raihan really appreciated being able to stay with his pokemon like that. He knew he would fall apart completely if it wasn't for Flygon supporting him right now.

“Flygon, I'll be going to sleep. Can you prolong the sandstorm if it stops while I sleep?”, he asked, his eyelids growing heavy as tears just continued falling from his eyes.

The Pokemon nodded in affirmation, watching Raihan's eyes finally fall shut and his breathing even out.


	7. All Is Lost (Without You)

Leon woke up with a start, jumping up in his hospital bed and looking around. Only Hop was sitting next to him, which was worrying. Raihan would _never_ leave him alone when he was hurt after all. What happened? Was Eternatus caught? And most importantly, where was Raihan? He was hyperventilating, his breathing quickening and his heart racing, only to be torn out of his thoughts by his brother's voice resounding next to him.

“Lee, I'm glad you're awake.”, Hop said with a smile, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. He obviously just woke up as well, or maybe he didn't sleep at all – Leon could only tell that his brother seemed tired. “How are you feeling?”

The champion tried to calm down, taking a few deep breaths until he wasn't panicking anymore. Last thing he wanted to do was to make Hop worry for him even more. His heartbeat was still quick and loud, but luckily it wasn't being monitored so Hop had no way of telling it was abnormal.

“I'm fine...well, as fine as I can be. It still hurts like hell to move.”, Leon admitted, laying back down. He looked over at Hop and took another deep breath which finally calmed his mind down enough so he could ask the questions that were on his mind. “So...what happened after I blacked out? Did you catch Eternatus?”

“Well, I wouldn't be sitting here if that thing wasn't caught. It was Victor who caught it though.”, his brother admitted, but he didn't seem too happy about the situation and Leon wondered why. Hop's gaze made him look so broken...good thing he decided to elaborate for Leon on that. “I couldn't save Galar, I couldn't protect you..”

Leon shook his head and gave his brother a patient smile, trying to cheer the younger male up. “I'm sure you contributed a lot to saving Galar. As to protecting me...you think I would actually _let_ you do that? It's my job as your big brother to look out for you.”

“Thank you for saying that.”, Hop nodded and looked aside, looking just a bit better. After that, silence weighed heavily on the two of them as both were unsure how to bring up the topic of Raihan. Leon had a bad feeling about this..why didn't Hop mention Raihan yet? It was no secret that the two of them were close.

The champion decided he would speak up first, too worried about his boyfriend to just keep silent any longer. “So...Raihan helped you guys too, right? Where is he now?”

Hop visibly flinched at the topic and shook his head, reaching out for the remote for the television and switching it on. “I'll just-- let the news do the talking for me. You might not believe me if I tell you what happened.”

Leon turned his attention to the screen where he saw Raihan fight Eternatus, his dragon features clearly showing up on the screen. The dragon trainer was beating those majestic wings to hold himself in the air and the tail was swishing around dangerously as Raihan let out a burst of blue flames through his mouth. If Leon hadn't been terrified of what this implied, he would be impressed at how good his boyfriend looked. He took the remote from his brother and raised the volume so he could hear the news anchor talk.

_-and it seems that the most beloved Gym Leader in Galar has turned to public enemy number one over night because of this. Police are on high alert and advise you to stay away from this man if you see him, but provide any information you have to the authorities to assist the search for the dragon hybrid. Everyone that wants to volunteer to a hunting party is welcome to do so, just call the number shown at the bottom of the screen to apply. We repeat, Gym Leader Raihan is not human and should be avoided unless you are prepared to fight him. Fighting him solo is strictly prohibited by the authorities to avoid more casualties. The current list of known victims to his attacks currently only contains Champion Leon, but the police are looking into further-_

Leon couldn't handle it any more and turned off the television again, slamming his fist down onto the bedside table. “Bullshit! They think Raihan did that to me?! He would never do _anything_ to hurt me – or anyone, especially not like this!”

How did it even come down to this? Raihan was exceptionally good at controlling himself by now and he shouldn't have lost his temper that easily, even when Leon was hurt. What has caused such a sudden and drastic transformation then?

Only one thought came to his mind. It was Rose, he had manipulated Raihan's medication somehow and then sent out a Rotom Drone to film him going berserk. He knew it was the man's doing since he remembered exactly what Rose told him the day before the incident.

“ _Let me present you with a simple choice.. You can leave here and be stubborn like you said you would or you can accept to come with me to Hammerlocke tomorrow before you leave. If you pick the former though, you might regret it.”_

Leon cursed under his breath. He thought that there was no way Rose could hurt Raihan because of how physically strong the Gym Leader was, he was naive to think that 'hurting' was only meant to be on a physical level. He wasn't there to protect Raihan like he should have and now his boyfriend had to go into hiding because of him. Who knew when he would even see his boyfriend again, if ever. He wanted to scream at how unfair this all was, but instead he listened to what his brother had to say.

“Victor and I tried telling the authorities that you were hurt by Eternatus, but they just thought that we are being threatened into silence by Raihan since we were 'just kids' – as the police stated. I-- wait, how are you not freaking out over him being a dragon hybrid, Lee? This is your best friend we're talking about here.”, Hop looked at him in shock, but Leon shook his head.

Leon mentally corrected his brother, it was so much more than just his best friend. Raihan was his boyfriend, his partner, someone who had known everything about how much Leon suffered over the years. And Raihan was the only one who shared that suffering. “Because I've known that for thirteen years now.”, he decided that it was alright to reveal everything he knew since Rose made it publicly known that Raihan was inhuman. “Raihan was bio-engineered by Rose when he was just a baby and he kept it a secret from everyone.”

Hop wasn't sure how to react to that, humming a little in thought. He crossed his arms in an attempt to calm himself down. “How come you know about it when nobody else did?”

“That's-”

Just when Leon wanted to tell his brother about the deal he made with Rose, a policeman entered the room and smiled upon seeing that Leon was awake.

“Sorry for disturbing you when you are recovering, Champion.”, he said, getting out a notepad and approaching Leon's bed. “But I really need a victim testimony, we are building a case against Gym Leader Raihan. So, do you remember anything from when he attacked you?”

Leon clenched his fist, glaring at the officer in front of him. How dare he think that the dragon trainer could hurt a person after everything he had done for the city of Hammerlocke and for all of Galar? “It wasn't Raihan, he would never do such a thing. It was the Pokemon Eternatus, I tried to catch it and it broke free, attacking me and making me black out. Raihan was only there to help..”

“Look, Champion. I know that Raihan was your best friend, but what he did to you is an unforgivable crime. You don't have to defend that monster.”, the policeman said, tapping his pencil against the notepad. “All we want is to ensure Galar's safety – and that can't be done when there is such a wild beast roaming around.”

“But Galar _is_ safe! Raihan helped evacuate all of Hammerlocke just before that, right?”, Leon tried to reason with the man, purposely ignoring how Raihan was called a monster so he wouldn't get angry.

The officer stood up and sighed. “Leon, that Raihan is not the same as the monster we saw yesterday. Who knows when he will go berserk and start burning down whole cities?”, he didn't let Leon retaliate as he continued to speak. “I understand that you must still be in shock after seeing your best friend like that, so I will leave you to recover for now. You do have the right to remain silent after all...but we will have to get the answers from Raihan directly then.”, the man bid the two brothers farewell and left the room, closing the door behind him.

The policeman sounded so disappointed in him that Leon couldn't help groaning in frustration. He told the whole truth, but what good did it do him? Nobody was going to believe him after all. Well, nobody but Hop, it seemed. But...should he be even telling Hop about the deal he made with Rose? He decided against it, at least for the time being. He looked at his brother again and his eyes turned cold, like never before.

“Hop. Don't ever tell anyone that I knew about Raihan's condition, not even Victor. If someone else finds out, I'll be branded a traitor.”, the champion said it in an utterly broken voice. If word got out that he knew about Raihan, he would never be able to see his boyfriend again, he would be thrown in jail or even worse... At least if he acted like he just found out about it, he still had some freedom to move.

But now that he refused to testify against Raihan, people would surely see it as a sign that he tried to protect the dragon. He was sure that if he set out to look for his boyfriend now, people would follow him, hoping that he would lead them to Raihan so they could harm him. Leon realized that his hands were truly bound here, he had no choice but to sit around and wait for _something_ to happen. He buried his face in his hands, shaking as he fought the tears – holding them back until after Hop would leave. He, the mighty champion, was helpless once again. He could help all the people in Galar, but he couldn't help his boyfriend and he couldn't help himself.

Rose had really played a Checkmate on him...getting the outcome he wanted from his plan to catch Eternatus while destroying Leon's life in the progress as a punishment for his disobedience. Leon gripped at his hair in frustration, hoping that he could find some sort of an opening after he recovered to go and look for Raihan, but he feared that wouldn't ever be the case.

* * *

In just eight more days Leon was standing in Wyndon stadium again, ready for his final match, but neither him nor Victor, nor the audience seemed to really be into it since all people talked about was Raihan, every city being scoured by policemen with Arcanines sniffing every corner, trying to get a lead on the missing Gym Leader. Hunting parties have also formed, with rewards in place for the team that would find and capture the dragon – regardless of him being dead or alive. Leon just couldn't fully focus on the match when he knew that someone could be attacking his boyfriend at this very moment. Sure, not many people set out to hunt while the match was on, but there were teams that would do anything for the prize money, including missing the final match in favor of an advantage over others.

The champion's heart raced and the world seemed to be covered by fog as his mind wandered among many possibilities of what could be happening to Raihan right now. People were very vocal online about their hopes of what would happen to the dragon. Some said it was best for everyone if he died, some said that it would be great to use Raihan for research (as if that hadn't been done already) and some were quite vocal that the new dragon features made the man more sexy, hoping to fuck him before he got killed. So, it was no wonder that Leon made a critical mistake, losing the match – the first match in thirteen years. Victor was the new Champion of Galar and everyone cheered for him, leaving Leon with absolutely nothing again. He lost his boyfriend because of Rose, he lost his credibility because he protected Raihan and now he lost his title as well. Though, it wasn't completely true that he was left with nothing.

His rage and hatred towards Rose still burned with an intensity that knew no equals. And now that he was left with nothing else, he could start up back from the beginning with that hatred as a base, more reckless than ever since he had nothing more to lose. There was no way left for him to go but up.

So, the day after the celebration for the new champion, Leon headed over to Rose Tower, lying about having to go get some belongings that he left in the former chairman's office to get a visitor's card key. He was glad that he was still trusted enough for him to enter the office unsupervised, so he could do what he wanted without anyone stopping him. As soon as he was inside, he closed the door and rushed over to the computer that stood at Rose's desk, using a cable to connect his Rotom phone to the device.

“Rotom, can you go into that computer and retrieve the video file from thirteen years ago? Should be from one of the laboratory cameras.”, he asked, referring to the video of the surveillance camera in the basement, where Rose clearly told Leon to shoot Raihan and put a gun into his hands. “Oh and see if you find anything considering Raihan, any information will help. Copy the files to my phone if you find them.”

The pokemon in his phone buzzed excitedly as it was entrusted with such an important task, quickly transferring from the phone into the computer and searching through the files for the one that his trainer mentioned.

“Is thizz the one you wanted, brzzt?”, it chirped from inside the computer, showing the video on the phone screen.

That was it! Leon couldn't believe his luck as his Rotom found it so quickly. He nodded eagerly and patted the Rotom PC on it's head. “That's it, thank you buddy!”

The pokemon seemed happy to be praised for his work like that. “Alright, brzzt! I also found the info you were looking for, everything izz on your phone now, brzzt!”

“Thanks again! You can go back to the phone now.”, the purple-haired male smiled at the pokemon and waited for him to do as he was asked to.

The Rotom did get back into the phone and Leon quickly disconnected the phone from the PC, leaving the office again like he didn't just steal sensitive information that was usually secured by a password. He returned the card back to the receptionist with a smile. “Thank you for letting me into the office, I got what I'd forgotten”

The receptionist shook his head and bid Leon farewell. “It was my pleasure.”

The ex-champion left the tower and called his Charizard, mounting it to fly over to the jail that Rose was at. He made sure it was visiting hours and he headed inside, asking to speak to the ex-chairman. The man had been sentenced to only twenty five years in prison, no doubt paying his way for such a mild sentence to be made. Leon headed inside and sat down in the room, separated from the man by just a thin glass wall. They had been granted some semblance of privacy with only the surveillance camera watching them and Leon was glad they were, otherwise his plan wouldn't work.

“Leon! You're the last person I expected to visit me here.”, the man said with that gross saccharine smile of his. “So, how does it feel to lose not only your beloved Raihan, but also the champion title?”

Leon narrowed his eyes and shook his head. “I won't give you the satisfaction of defeat over me, Rose.” He crossed his arms and leaned back in his chair. “I'll be frank with you. I want you to tell me where you keep the medication that Raihan needs, or at least the formula that I need to make it myself.”

“And why should I do that?”, the former chairman asked pointedly, leaning back in his chair. “Why would I destroy a plan I had to spend so much time setting up?”

The purple-haired male frowned. “Because if you don't, I'll release that video from thirteen years ago to the police. I have nothing more to lose, but I will drag you down with me if I have to. Increase your sentence, make _you_ lose your status, let everyone know that you knew about Raihan all along – maybe I will even reveal that you threatened me into silence.”

Rose clapped his hands and looked at Leon in bewilderment. “Bravo. You really are starting to become a good businessman.”, Leon clearly heard the subtext - _You're becoming more like me._ Rose then stroked his beard in thought. “I would like to say that I accept the deal, but I don't have the formula or the medicine any more. I destroyed both before I made Raihan lose control back at the tower by giving him a dose of dragon hormones. I knew you would come up with a cunning strategy to make me give you the medicine otherwise – and you didn't disappoint.”

Leon frowned even more and really wanted to see this man rot in hell more than anything. So that is what happened back in Hammerlocke. Raihan really wanted to help him, letting Rose give him the 'medicine' so he would remain in control no matter what happened. Of course seeing Leon injured would trigger his transformation then. “Then I guess the deal is off. But it really doesn't matter, I'm more than happy to see you in jail.”

Leon got up and wanted to leave, only for Rose to hold him back. “Hold on, Leon. I still have something to say to you.”

“What if I don't want to hear it?”, the former champion barked back, not looking at the older man, but what Rose said next intrigued him nonetheless.

“It's about your dearest Raihan, so you just _might_ be interested.” - Leon returned to his seat and looked straight into the green eyes of the man, waiting for him to go on. Rose smiled, satisfied. “Knew that would get your attention. Now, what I say might be hurtful to you-”. Like nothing Rose said ever was... “But I think that your best course of action right now is to let Raihan be killed, or even better finish him off yourself.”

“You're ridiculous. Like I would ever allow that to happen.”, the purple-haired male spat out. “You have made him like this and now you're saying he should be disposed of?”

“Look, Leon. It hurts me too that I have to lose such a great specimen, especially since the experiment was revolutionary.”, Leon glared at him, but the former chairman didn't seem bothered and continued. “But you have to understand that right now there is no more saving him. As I just told you, the medicine doesn't exist any more and even Oleana doesn't remember the exact formula.”

The younger male shook his head. “I could help develop it again. It's not like there aren't any other capable scientists left in Galar.”

“Well, let's say you manage to make the medicine and turn Raihan back to normal. What then?”, Rose asked, leaning back in his chair and tapping a finger against the armrest. “You can't possibly think that the people of Galar would accept him back with open arms. In fact, I bet you everything that I own that nobody will even try developing the medicine if you say it's for him.”

Leon opened his mouth, then closed it and his lips formed a thin line. He hated to admit that Rose was right...Raihan didn't have a place to return to anymore. Not after he was broadcast live all over Galar. Who knew, maybe the news already spread to the rest of the world as well. And it was all because of the man that sat across of him. “I hate you so much, Rose.”

As Leon got up to leave again, he could hear Rose chuckle, as if what the younger man had said was the best joke that he ever heard. “The only one to blame here is you, Leon. You knew from the start that disobedience means punishment.”

Leon didn't even have the strength to retaliate, simply heading out of the door and leaving the building. Rose really wasn't joking about being able to ruin his life in mere seconds and the former champion hated him for that. For being such a petty man as to destroy Raihan completely just because Leon told him to wait one day.

The purple-haired male called his Charizard, flying back to his apartment. As soon as he was inside, he made a beeline to the bedroom and let himself fall onto the bed, completely exhausted from his escapades. He didn't even have the strength to change out of his clothes and into pajamas. Yet, despite all the effort he put into getting what he needed from Rose, he was still left with nothing – even worse, he was now even more aware of the painful reality of the situation. Leon's hand wandered to his neck, the fingertips brushing against the scar that his boyfriend left there. The last bit of connection he had to his boyfriend. He couldn't just call him or text him after all, the police were monitoring Raihan's phone and keeping track of all the calls that he might receive. They wanted to follow the signal to pinpoint the Gym Leader's location and Leon knew there was always someone watching out for any activity from Raihan's device.

A tear rolled down Leon's cheek and he allowed himself to just curl up into himself and cry at this hopeless situation. Sadness, frustration, anger and desperation all mixed together, overflowing his chest, and spilled out onto the pillow in the form of hot tears.

“Raihan...”, Leon called out into the darkness of his room, as if that would make the dragon appear before him, but of course all he was greeted with was silence.

As the room grew darker and darker with the last rays of sunlight disappearing, Leon felt more and more suffocated by his own feelings. His mind ran in circles as he tried to find some way he could help his boyfriend, but every time he just ended up seeing Rose's smirk and hearing his words.

_Let Raihan be killed, or finish him off yourself._

He could never allow that to happen...but wasn't it selfish of him? What if Raihan didn't want to live like that, would Leon be forcibly keeping him alive and making him suffer? Leon couldn't deal with this situation and he couldn't even think anymore of what was right and what was wrong, at least not alone. He decided he would try talking to other people that liked and respected Raihan first thing in the morning. Maybe they had a solution to this?

* * *

Leon went to the Gyms of the first three Leaders, asking them about their take on the situation. He decided to go in the order that the Challengers went to the gyms, heading to the Turffield gym first, where Milo greeted him enthusiastically. The grass-type Gym Leader was always a tender person, so Leon hoped he would get something insightful out of him.

“Hey Leon, how are you doing?”, Milo said, not letting go of the Wooloo he was grooming. “Sorry about Raihan, I know you two were really close.”

He got straight to the point, huh? Well, Leon didn't complain since it made it easier for him to talk about that topic. “I've been better. Still trying to find a solution that won't hurt Raihan, so I kinda hoped you could help me out.”

“Well, I might be a farmer, but I never had to deal with dragons. That's kind of Raihan's own turf.”, Milo shook his head and finally released the sheep pokemon, after which it rolled away from him. “Raihan was like a brother to me, but I am afraid I can't really help you help him. The people are so angry that they won't listen to reason and now that I said that I wasn't out to find Raihan, they are keeping close tabs on me.”

So Milo was in the same situation as the former champion was himself. Leon smiled and reassuringly patted Milo on the shoulder. “Don't be so down. I'll figure something out eventually...thank you for still worrying about him.”

Amidst all the chaos, Leon really thought that he was the only person left that was worried about Raihan, but that wasn't true. At least Milo and Hop were also feeling the same. The purple-haired male flew over to meet up with Nessa, where his warm happy feeling was about to be destroyed again.

“You want to save Raihan?”, the woman asked as she was doing he stretches in the gym. “I'd say that ship has sunk already. People want to see him _dead_ , Leon. I mean, there are also creeps who want to do different things, but that's besides the point.” She sat up again and looked up at the former champion. “Fact is, he is being hunted. And I don't think it would be right to go up against an entire nation just for one man.”

“But wasn't he also your friend?”, Leon protested and clenched his fists, frustrated that she gave up like this.

Nessa stood up and took a swig of water, looking up into the golden eyes with her own blue ones, calm like the ocean and yet with a smidgen of sadness hidden just behind the calm facade. “Let me ask you something. Would a friend hide that he wasn't human? He didn't trust us enough to admit it, so I don't think he considers us friends.”, she looked away again and all but slammed her water bottle back onto the table. “I think it's best to let go of the things that you can't salvage or else you'll get swallowed by the ocean as well.”

Leon wanted to scream at that statement. It's not like Raihan didn't trust them, but there was just no way he could have said anything to anyone with the vice grip Rose had on him. Of course, Nessa didn't know that, but it still hurt. Despite his anger and frustration, Leon thanked the water Gym Leader and went back to Motostoke to talk to Kabu. It was probably a good idea to stop after that, since Allister, Bede and Marnie were still children and he really didn't want to bother Melony, especially when her Gym was so far away from Motostoke. So, his last hope to find some semblance of advice on what to do was the veteran Leader. Surely, he could provide Leon with some insightful suggestions.

Kabu was in the dressing room, obviously about to start training when Leon arrived. Despite his schedule being disrupted, the man was very patient and accommodating, listening to the worries of the former champion intently before he replied himself. “I realize that the situation must be the toughest for you. After all, you two were really close, even when you were just two little boys challenging my Gym.”, he paused and frowned in thought, grabbing the ends of the towel that hung around his neck. “As for what I think of the matter...my opinion is similar to that of the people in Galar. I am against Raihan being killed since I respect him, but he needs to be found and contained so that we can get answers. After all, people are just scared of him because he is an unknown species, so getting answers is the only sure way to make him look less dangerous in the people's eyes.”  
  
“But wouldn't people immediately try to kill him once they find him?”, the purple-haired male asked in genuine concern, to which Kabu seemed to be lost in thought.

Then the Gym Leader nodded. “I've decided, I'll form a search party as well. Only then can I be sure that no harm comes to Raihan. Do you want to participate as well?”

“I'd rather not, sorry. I still have some things that the former chairman Rose caused that require immediate attention.” _Raihan was definitely one of those things_ , but Leon wouldn't mention that – especially not when Kabu seemed so fired up to find him first. Leon wouldn't allow that. He should take a look at the files he stole from Rose's computer, then he could start sorting out the mess Rose left behind and maybe once he finished that, the people would be less wary of him leaving to the wild area? He had no choice but to try. He couldn't simply sit around and sulk while Raihan was in danger! He promised that he would protect his boyfriend with whatever means necessary, Leon even endured so many years of Rose's torture for him. This was nothing compared to that. The purple-haired male patted his cheeks like he would before a battle and mentally screamed at himself for being so weak – _come on, Leon, get it_ together! He psyched himself up and nodded to the older male in acknowledgment. Kabu wasn't as much on Raihan's side as Leon hoped, but it made Leon realize that he had to take action immediately. Maybe if he helped the people with their problems, they would be more willing to listen to him when he spoke out for Raihan? He had to try it out and see for himself. “Thank you for taking the time to talk to me, my mind is made up on what I have to do now.”

Kabu wasn't sure he fully understood what that meant, but he nodded nonetheless. “Glad I was able to help. But whatever you do, don't let the people's opinion sway your own, alright?”

“Thank you, I won't. Whatever the public thinks, I will stand by my friendship with Raihan.” Leon knew that even if the whole world turned against the dragon trainer, he wouldn't abandon him. Raihan has been through so much and endured so much pain for Leon...the former Champion knew it was time for him to do the same in return - starting by reading the documents he stole from Rose's computer. He wouldn't give up without trying out every last possibility that he had.


	8. Fatal Lullaby

For Raihan, the days following the incident were absolute hell. He set his phone into offline mode, even going so far as to ask the Rotom inside it if it wanted to leave, which it surprisingly didn't. Still, the dragon knew he didn't have much hope to ever be able to return to his previous everyday life with everyone now knowing of his secret. Yet he couldn't bring himself to completely get rid of the phone either – he wasn't sure if it was his stubbornness, the fact that Rotom was housing in it, his idiotic hopeful self or just pure fear of forgetting the last bits of humanity that made him cling onto the device. Maybe he hoped that Leon would try to contact him, maybe he hoped that his location would be found despite the phone being offline and he would be killed for being such a monster – he really didn't know.

Raihan felt like didn't know anything anymore.

There was absolutely nothing familiar surrounding him except for his Pokemon. His clothes were mostly gone due to his dragon transformation tearing them apart, there were no familiar scents around him due to him being in a moldy cave most of the time and most importantly, there was no Leon in his vicinity. The dragon trainer cried and cried and nothing his pokemon did to try and cheer him up seemed to work. Raihan did appreciate the effort, though. The dragon wasn't sure if he could survive like this – well, he probably would be able to remain alive...but he sure as hell wouldn't _live_. He would be just barely scraping by and existing. Would he even want to be alive for much longer like this? He seriously started to doubt it, his mind wandering between various scenarios of Leon being punished for protecting him – if Leon even would protect him.

His dragon self was screaming at him inside his mind, asking Raihan why he had abandoned his mate like this. But Raihan simply didn't want Leon to be physically hurt back on the rooftop and he was determined to do whatever it took to keep it that way. What would he do if Leon would suddenly appear to try and kill him because the people of Galar wanted him dead? It was his responsibility as champion to help out in such crises after all – and Leon always did whatever it took to protect the Galar region...

He knew he wouldn't fight back if it came down to it. He couldn't hurt Leon, not in a million years.

And a tiny part of Raihan hoped that the champion felt the same way, that he was ready to sacrifice the whole nation just for Raihan..

Then again, Leon had a family he needed to protect while Raihan only had one single person that he still lived for. If it weren't for Leon, the dragon trainer would take his life and the pokemon that surrounded him all didn't judge him for that, they understood their trainer completely. Unlike with other pokemon trainers, Raihan's pokemon willingly followed him and when the dragon offered them to just become his pokemon permanently, they did. He didn't have to battle and hope that the pokemon stayed in the ball, those were Raihan's friends and companions. They understood that Raihan was getting desperate, longing to see Leon, longing to belong somewhere again. So naturally, they all surrounded him and gave him warmth and support now that he was all alone.

“Thank you all.”, Raihan would mutter every night before falling asleep.

Every day, the dragon would check his surroundings and if he didn't see any people out in the wild area, he would fly away to a different location. This allowed him absolutely no chance to get used to the environment and made him irritated, but he knew he had to frequently change his spot or else he would be found. There were hunting parties searching restlessly all the time after all. There were a few times when Raihan would even see the people that were out looking for him. Pokeball in one hand, a weapon in another. He was shot at multiple times, someone let their Pokemon set off a Dazzling Gleam onto Raihan directly...but the dragon managed to escape, just barely. Bullet wounds healed fairly easily, but fairy attacks left lasting damage on his body, he would get nosebleeds or get dizzy – sometimes damaged to the point where Flygon had to carry him to the next hiding spot since he would be unable to move at all.

The dragon trainer completely lost track of time between how dizzy he was and how he cried himself to sleep night after night. His body was hurting all over, more and more scars appearing on it as people got better and better at finding him and started venturing through even the toughest weather conditions. And Raihan let the people hurt him with their attacks, toughing it out the best he could. He didn't want to retaliate. He didn't want to hurt the people that Leon risked so much to protect. But he didn't know how long he would survive if he kept that up..

And that wasn't even the worst thing. Even though Raihan couldn't tell by memory how many days have passed – he knew that his body always behaved the same, month after month. He knew with the way he would get more and more emotionally unstable every day that his nesting week was coming up very soon – now there were just about two days left until then at most. He didn't want anyone other than Leon to see him during the nesting week, especially now that he was more a dragon than he ever was. But with how good the people had become at finding him, the chances of that were pretty slim.

There was no way he would be able to make a nest between him changing locations every day, there being nothing that smelled familiar... and he couldn't even imagine nesting without Leon right now - did that mean he was also getting closer to the mating season again? Well, fucking _bingo._ He knew how useless his body was during the mating period. He would be killed without a doubt if people found him during that time – that is, if he even were to survive the next few days until then.

“Damn it all..”, he muttered under his breath, starting to cry again. He just wanted to see Leon. He just wanted to fall asleep in a bed instead of the hard stone floor and he just wanted something to replace this void that was inside his heart – he was sick of just feeling so empty..

He should have been careful what he wished for, after all one of his wishes was about to be granted.

Flygon had left the cave that Raihan was sitting in, presumably going out for berries so they wouldn't go hungry. Usually the dragon trainer was against his pokemon wandering out during the day, but he had to admit that he was getting ravenous, seeing as they kept their trips to the berry trees at a minimum to avoid getting spotted. Thus, he only asked Flygon to be careful outside and decided that he would wait for his trusted Pokemon to get back and after the meal they would switch locations again.

He sat back down after seeing Flygon out and closed his eyes for a few minutes. He was just so tired, unable to sleep during the night with his limbs aching and a fear of being found always looming over him. His body was worn out after being chased around and weakened by the fairy-type attacks that the people set off. He just wanted to sleep all day if possible, but of course that was just wishful thinking. So, he just enjoyed the brief moment of respite that he got, burying his face in his hands and just letting himself get enveloped by the darkness.

It was comforting, to just shut the world off, not seeing anything and barely hearing anything either due to how well hidden the caves in the wild area were. He could only hear the distant cries of pokemon, their feet on the grass outside--- Wait, when did the footsteps get so close and why were there so many?

Raihan's eyes shot open and he jumped up, just to see a red light in the distance, coming closer and closer in mere seconds.

It was a fire attack of a pokemon, heading straight to where he was!

“Everyone, return!”, he yelled out just before the impact, his pokemon all disappearing into their balls just as the flames engulfed Raihan's body.

The dragon trainer screamed out in pain, the flames licking at his skin as he sank back onto his knees. He resisted fire and it wasn't the first time of him being set ablaze (thanks to Rose), but in the weakened state that he was in the flames did more damage than usual. He looked up to the entrance of the cave and saw the people getting closer. He knew he had to move before they blocked the only exit he had, so despite the excruciating pain he was in, he got back up, limping towards the exit. Bloodied up and completely disheveled, he left the cave to face the people that attacked, who stared at him in pure shock, as if they hadn't yet believed that he indeed turned into a dragon. _Shoot first and ask questions later, eh?_

“Yo.”, Raihan offered, trying his best at a smile, which of course none of the people returned. “Didn't expect you all to come here so suddenly. I would have cleaned up my appearance if I knew.”

He tried for a joke, stalling for time to let his body regenerate a little. He licked his lips nervously as he looked at the people that stood before him – tasting blood. Oh...it would seem his nose started bleeding again, that would also explain why he felt so light-headed. Was this really the end then? There were about forty people looking at him in disgust and some with fear. About fifteen of them were policemen – it would be a great day to commit a crime when so many officers were looking for him, Raihan thought to himself with a self-deprecating smile.

“He really is a monster!”

“I didn't want to believe it, but here he is!”

“What are we waiting for then?! Attack!”

Raihan knew this was his cue to try and flee. His body was nowhere near recovering to a point where he could fly away quickly, but he still needed to try. He couldn't give up the life that Leon so desperately protected – no matter how he wished he could simply die to end this suffering. The dragon spread his wings, crouching down on the floor to be able to take off easier and he was already off of the ground when someone ordered their pokemon to use a draining kiss on him, making him fall back to the ground unceremoniously again. This was too much. He wouldn't be able to handle another attack.. So, he just gave up and stayed still on the ground in hope that he wouldn't be hurt anymore. The dragon hoped that the people would understand that he would just let himself be taken away, since he couldn't say that he gave up.

It wasn't because he was too proud or because he didn't want to communicate – no. He literally couldn't speak, since every time he opened his mouth and took a breath to try and speak, he just coughed up blood instead. Raihan raised his hands, trying to signal to the police that he surrendered, but that gesture was misinterpreted as well.

Police tackled him in a matter of seconds, two men holding his wrists pinned down to the ground while a third officer came closer from behind and pulled out a hunting knife.

  
“We have to cut his wings so he doesn't escape again. Hold him down with everything you have.”, the officer ordered, gripping Raihan's wing close to it's root and brought the knife down.

The dragon trainer shook his head as he looked at the man with complete terror in his eyes, his wings beating against his back as he tried to wiggle it free from the man's grip. He didn't want this- he was so terrified of losing his wings in such a gruesome and painful way. He tried to shake off the men that held him pinned down like this – he knew he was usually strong enough to do so. But he also knew that usually his body wasn't this slow to regenerate. Usually he would have had enough food and sleep beforehand and usually he wouldn't have to deal with fairy-types attacking him directly. Raihan started crying, trying to get out some semblance of a word that would let the people know that he wouldn't do anything – but he failed, more blood dripping down onto the ground below. The grip on his wrists and his wing only tightened the more he tried to struggle against it – way past the bruising point by now.

Even Rose didn't hold him down like this – at least not after his body has accepted the foreign DNA. His mind screamed out that he needed someone to save him, he needed to get away from here, he needed to run! His heartbeat quickened and he struggled more, huffing up smoke as his instincts told him to burn everyone surrounding him...he was panicking, his thoughts all shutting down and giving way to his more primal instincts of survival.

“Quick, someone put him to sleep!”, the officer that had tried to cut off the wings yelled, grabbing the back of Raihan's neck and pushing his head even more into the ground to try and prevent any harm that might come to the civilian volunteers. “Talk about a cornered animal being the most dangerous, huh?”, the man said to Raihan.

The dragon didn't even register those words, he just wanted to leave here, he wanted to run before he was put down by someone's pokemon – he let out a broken cry as a last attempt at saving himself, his four remaining pokemon breaking out of their balls again, ready to defend their trainer.

Goodra and Duraludon made quick work of the men that held Raihan down, but the trainer couldn't move yet. He needed a little more time, especially now that his right wing was also damaged from all his flailing preventing a clean cut.

He knew that his four pokemon were no match against so many people. If only Flygon was here – he could have lifted him up, set off an earthquake and buy him time to escape...but that wasn't the case. Raihan knew that if his body failed to recover before his pokemon fainted he wouldn't be able to escape.  
  
“I SAID SOMEONE PUT THIS MONSTER TO SLEEP!!”, the police officer yelled out again and this time someone acted straight away.  
  
An older gentleman stepped forward and let his Shiinotic out of the ball, ordering him to use Sleep Spore on Raihan.

“Please don't-”, the dragon trainer tried to beg, finally finding his voice, but the attack hit and as much as Goodra tried to wash the sleeping spores away with the rain, Raihan had already inhaled some, his mind swimming somewhere between dream and reality as he struggled to stay awake.

The voices of the people that attacked him and the cries of his own pokemon dissolved into white noise as Raihan closed his eyes. Sleep started taking over his mind and it finally made his fear disappear, his head filling with absolute nothingness as Raihan's world went completely black.

Whatever the people had planned to do to him – be it taking him back to get some answers, killing him right there or torturing him first – Raihan knew he had no other choice now but to let them. He couldn't believe that just two minutes of looking away have led to him being defeated after holding on for over two weeks...


	9. Fatal Lullaby ~ Leon's Side

Leon went through the documents that he took from Rose's computer, but it seemed that the man told the truth. Some pages were missing or corrupted despite the file being on his phone and clearly readable for the most part. And there was also something else that was off. Some parts were only accessible from the chairman's computer, clearly denying Leon access because the IP address didn't match. So then...what would happen if someone else became the chairman and got their hands on this data?

The purple-haired male frowned. He didn't know what exactly was in the documents that he didn't have access to, but he could only assume it was related to the experiments that were being conducted on his boyfriend, since Rose always noted the experiments and their results. That meant that whoever got their hands on this data would also have knowledge of Raihan's weaknesses and what made him lose control. This was far too much power to leave in someone else's hands, Leon decided. If someone knew how to manipulate Raihan's state, they could easily prove that he was dangerous or use that knowledge to physically harm the dragon.

Leon put his phone down and buried his face in his hands, letting out a groan of frustration. He didn't learn anything new from the files he obtained, he didn't think that there would be a secondary security measure, especially not like this. Those files were on his phone and yet they required an internet connection to read, making it impossible to bypass the IP address blockade. That left Leon with only one option – he had to become the new chairman before anyone else could.

The former champion got up and dressed for the day, heading for Rose Tower immediately. Like always, he was followed by people who hoped for him to slip up and reveal Raihan's location, but Leon wouldn't give them the satisfaction of winning so easily. He refrained from texting or calling his boyfriend to prevent his location from being given away by the phone signal and he didn't make any (obvious) attempts to help Raihan either so that he wouldn't be stopped. So when he was asked about his reasoning behind becoming the new chairman, Leon simply smiled and told a smooth lie.

“I've been champion for thirteen years and I've been around the chairman for quite a lot of time, so I know most of what goes into being a chairman.”, he paused and crossed his arms in front of his chest, standing there proudly as he pulled off his signature smile – it was so easy to put this smile on after forcing it on demand for thirteen years. “I know all the companies that the Galar League is associated with and I am more than ready to start working right away.”

The staff hummed and nodded to each other in agreement. “We need a few days to ask the people on their opinion – though we don't have any other applicants for the position yet with how absorbed everyone is with the recent news.”

Leon kept smiling and nodded, even though he wanted to scream at everyone to just leave his boyfriend in peace. Raihan didn't deserve to be hunted like this, he has done nothing wrong and he didn't hurt anybody... “Please contact me through email then. Thank you for your time.”

With that said, Leon mounted Charizard again and flew over to the wild area – of course now followed by even more people who were so stupid to believe that he wanted to go there to look for Raihan. When Leon landed near a den that was glowing purple with the energy that was overflowing from it, the people didn't come down to help him, rather circling above him on their pokemon like vultures. Leon didn't blame them for not coming down to help since the pokemon have grown more aggressive after Eternatus awakened, but it just went to show how two-faced the people were.  
  
Still, the former champion clutched the ball of his trusted Charizard and jumped into the den, entering a battle against the Dynamax Pokemon. Sometime in the middle of the battle, Victor joined in and the two of them took the raid down without a problem. They agreed to work together to clean up the mess that Rose caused by awakening Eternatus, fighting raid after raid until eventually all Pokemon calmed down again and it was safe for regular adventurers to do raid battles. Both the new champion and the ex-champion were completely spent after a whole day of raid battles in both the Motostoke outskirts and the outskirts of Hammerlocke and they decided to both call it a day after that has been taken care of.

“Thank you for the help, Leon. I wouldn't be able to handle it all myself. The pokemon were really aggressive and strong. You and your Charizard are really an awesome team.”, Victor said, smiling happily. He was glad that despite the tension that lingered between them after their final match they were still able to work together.

“Don't mention it. I'm used to handling such situations alone, but it was nice to have someone helping me.”, Leon hated to admit it, but he would have never cleared the situation up in just one day if it was just him alone. “Now head home and rest up, I'm sure you have a lot of duties as the new champ.”

The teen shook his head. “Since there is no chairman yet, there is nobody that really gives me any work. So all I am doing now is giving interviews and helping Hop with his research.”

Right, his brother had started to work as an apprentice under Sonia to become the next professor. “Well, don't get too used to it. I applied as the next chairman today, so maybe I will be the one giving you more work in a few days.”

“Really? That's great! I'm sure you will make an amazing chairman.”, Victor cheered and smiled at Leon so earnestly, the taller male wanted to cringe.

This was the same smile that he had given Rose thirteen years ago. So innocent and pure, unaware of the darkness that lurks underneath every person. While Leon didn't want to corrupt it, he had a feeling that it was inevitable with the many secrets that he kept together with Rose and Raihan. The purple-haired male felt so dirty standing next to the teen, so he decided it was best to wrap up the conversation quickly as to not accidentally tarnish that innocent mind.

“Thank you, I hope it all works out.”, he simply said as he called out his Charizard again. “It's time for us to go home. Don't stay out too late and remember to have dinner, alright?”

After Victor nodded in agreement and bid him farewell, the ex-champion departed for his apartment in Wyndon, stripping off his clothes and heading for the shower as soon as he was inside, like that would make him feel less dirty and corrupted. He feared that by stepping into the role of the chairman, he would immediately become more like Rose. Hell, he already resorted to blackmail and manipulation and he only wanted to be the chairman so he had access to data that nobody in Galar should be privy to. Everything he did was selfish and dirty. Even his will to sort out the mess that Rose left behind was just so that people would be less wary of him, so that he could search for Raihan. Everything about his actions was for wrong reasons, but in all honesty, Leon didn't care in the end.

_He already lost all his purity._

Leon knew that he started becoming more and more corrupted from the moment that Rose made him pull the trigger and shoot Raihan. He knew that he started caring less and less about the world around him, living in a bubble that contained just him and Raihan. But honestly, how could he care about a world that was made up of lies, how could he care about people that were so easy to give up on a person that protected them for so long just because of him not being human? How could he care about a world that didn't want to listen to reason, blindly following whatever the media was saying despite Leon trying to disprove it time and time again. He was sick of it all. Without Raihan by his side it felt like he has lost all hope so Leon decided that the opposite was also true.

He _had_ to get Raihan back or he would go insane.  
  
Leon turned the shower water all the way to hot, the water scalding his skin as he let it just run over his back and shoulders. As painful as that feeling was, Leon didn't mind the pain, thinking of his boyfriend breathing blue flames at Eternatus to protect him. He almost felt the heat of that imagery as he still stood under the hot stream of water and he opened his eyes to look down at his feet as the water continued to stream down his back. Raihan was always so warm when he held him close, he was so gentle and so careful, like Leon was some sort of fragile treasure. Even when his dragon side took over, he made sure not to hurt him beside the bite on his neck.

And Leon was so glad that he had that permanent mark on his neck, he proudly wore that mark, even though nobody seemed to really notice it. It was still very special to Leon, it connected them no matter how far apart they were and no matter how hard the things got. The purple-haired male turned off the water again, grabbing the towel that hung next to the shower and dabbing himself dry before wrapping the towel around his long hair. He walked over to the mirror and tilted his head to the side, touching the mark again. He let out a soft sigh, it has been too long since he could spend time in Raihan's arms. It was almost exactly two months since they nested together, if he remembered correctly---

Leon's eyes shot wide open and he put on a bathrobe, throwing the door to his bedroom open. “Rotom! What date is it?!”

“Today is Thursday, March 18th, brzzt!”, Rotom chirped happily as it flew around Leon in circles upon being called.

“The 18th already?”, Leon echoed, his heart sinking in terror – fourteen days have passed since the battle against Eternatus.. Has Raihan really been out there alone for two whole weeks now? And if that was really the case, he only had tomorrow to go save Raihan, otherwise he would start nesting and would be vulnerable to attacks...

What should he do? He couldn't just leave Raihan unsupervised during that time! What if people knew about that habit and would take advantage of it?

Leon paced around his room nervously. He couldn't just blindly go on a search for his boyfriend, people would follow him and that would endanger the dragon even more – he had been avoiding that for so long now. And if he disappeared like that, he would most likely miss his chance to become the chairman and put Raihan at an even greater risk of getting hurt if the information fell into the wrong hands. What should he do? Could he even do anything? Leon let himself fall onto his bed in defeat and the pokemon living in the phone followed him, hovering just above his owner.

The former champion had to think of a solution and he had to think of it fast. How could he have forgotten about Raihan's cycle? He had been through it so many times before, now was not the time to be so negligent, not when he couldn't even see what was happening to Raihan! He grabbed Rotom out of the air and checked the news. Maybe the people wouldn't follow him if he flew out now since they saw him just raiding all day today? Maybe the people were more relaxed now that they realized that Leon was still helping the region in his own way? The purple-haired male could only hope they were.. He scrolled through the online magazines he had been keeping an eye on for news on Raihan and he started getting angry again at the new articles.

“ _Champion Victor saves the day – Raid battles are open to public again!”_

“ _Yesterday a champion, today a hero – this 15-year old knows no bounds!”_

“ _Galar's savior Victor stopping rabid pokemon in just a day!”_

It wasn't Victor's fault and Leon didn't hate the teen for getting so much attention. But what made the purple-haired male angry is that nobody even mentioned him. It was like Leon wasn't even there...and the hope that the comment section looked different was soon also crushed. Nobody seemed to remember that Leon even was in the wild area, despite so many people following Leon around in hopes of finding Raihan. Why was this happening? Everyone just cared about the new champion and how Victor was the one that also caught Eternatus, making him the savior of Galar.

Leon was frustrated. So what, now that he lost his champion title, he was considered absolutely useless? Or was there a ban of speaking about him because he was so clearly trying to protect Raihan? Either way, his plan failed once again. He only managed to give more credibility to the new champion, who was already just as popular as Leon had been at the peak of his career. What was left there for him to lose? He had no more social status and was treated like a criminal with how he constantly was under the watchful eye of the townspeople and even the police.   
  
He glanced over as Rotom gave off a sound that signaled a new mail incoming and he dejectedly looked over it. Well...at least the League seemed to have noticed that he was helping the champion today. Leon lazily rolled over on his bed, the towel that was wrapped around his head falling down as he did. He didn't care to pick it up as he read the email in whole.

“ _We have noticed your efforts to help the region of Galar and are happy to announce that you were chosen for the position. Please come in tomorrow to get an introduction to your daily tasks and to get the passwords for the CEO's computer. Rose Tower was mostly funded by the League, so for as long as you are the chairman it is yours to use as you please.”_

Leon smiled. That was actually a lot better than he expected. If he could utilize every aspect of the tower that meant access to areas that he previously couldn't enter without Rose. That also meant that he could go and search through the labs to find the answers that he so desperately needed. And with the fact that he would have to go there tomorrow, he still would have time to decide what he should do about Raihan's situation afterwards. However, he knew that he had to be there for his boyfriend before he becomes vulnerable so it wasn't up for debate that he would leave for the wild area tomorrow.

“Rotom, set the alarm to 8 a.m”, he asked of the pokemon, rolling over onto his other side and not caring to properly dress in his pajamas or dry his hair before he drifted off to sleep. This night, he heard another voice in his dreams. It was Raihan, smiling at him warmly as he wrapped his arms around Leon.

“ _That's why I love you so much. You always move on to positive thoughts, no matter how dire the situation is.”_

Leon knew he would be strong for his boyfriend. No matter what expected them at the end of the road, he wouldn't give up on Raihan. He would save his boyfriend or fall together with him.

* * *

Next morning, he got up as he planned to, putting on his more formal clothes. He put on a white shirt, beige jodhpurs and a red tailcoat, topping it off with a frilly jabot and putting on his freshly polished knee-high boots. As for his hair, he decided to put it into a neat braid, showing off the mark he had from Raihan even more clearly. He proudly looked at himself in the mirror, he would definitely make a good first impression like this. He looked just as professional as Rose, if not even more so.

With renewed confidence and determination, he went outside and flew over to the tower in Wyndon, not caring to take the monorail there since flying was so much faster. Immediately as he walked in the staff greeted him with a smile.

“Welcome, Mr. Chairman, Sir!”, they all said in unison, which was actually more intimidating than Leon imagined. Still, they let him pass to where a single man was standing – holding a black envelope and a stack of papers.

“Thank you for coming in so early.”, the man said with a smile, but to Leon it was more convenient to come in early so he would have the time to search through the files and fly over to Raihan in the evening. “I won't keep you for long today since the weekend is coming up, but I want you to listen to my briefing before you're free to go. I worked under the former chairman as his second secretary.”

“It's a pleasure to meet you.”, Leon said with a charming smile on his lips and offered the man his hand, which the secretary shook.

“The pleasure is all mine, Sir.”, the secretary said with a smile of his own and gestured to the elevator for Leon to enter first.

They went up to the office that Rose left behind, but it was obvious that a cleanup crew has been here to make the office look almost unused, the scent of cleaning solution still lingering in the air and freshly cut flowers standing on the desk. Leon sat down behind the desk and it felt somehow wrong to do that, but he wanted to make a good first impression so he stayed put and looked at the man who still stood before him.

“Please proceed.”, he said in a gentle, yet authoritarian manner, his gaze sharpening as he listened to the man.

There was nothing that Leon didn't already know- He had to maintain relationships with the sponsors, never post anything incriminating or damaging to the league's reputation on the official account and deal with applications of Gym Challengers. Other than that, he had to manage Gym Leaders and conduct the opening ceremony of the Gym Challenge. A lot of work, but not much more than he had under Rose. After getting the briefing, the employee slid the black envelope across the table to Leon.

“This is your exclusive elevator key card and the passwords to the computer. Feel free to alter the password once you log in. You can also program who gets to go on which level, as long as you don't neglect your duties as the chairman, the tower is yours to command.”

“Thank you.”, Leon nodded and immediately switched the computer on. “I will check some emails and contact sponsors now, you're free to leave and enjoy your weekend if you wish.”

The secretary bowed and left the room. “Thank you, Sir. I wish you a good day.”

Leon logged into the computer and the first thing he did was change the password and then go to look thorough the files on Raihan that he couldn't before. Suddenly, he was glad that he was the first to get access to it. There were notes of Raihan's weaknesses, which wounds he had the hardest time to regenerate, how his mood changed when Leon was hurt. The purple-haired male wouldn't put it past the people who were serious about killing Raihan to utilize any of these tricks.

He closed the files again and decided to protect them with a separate password. Nobody should be able to access the information too easily. He should figure out how to undo the IP address blockade so he could copy the files and delete them from here later, but a password was better than nothing. He wanted to check the emails like he was supposed to be doing when he heard a loud thud at his window front, like a Corviknight flying against the glass. Leon jumped up and turned around to see what it was, only to gasp in shock.

_It was Flygon!_

Flygon was outside his office and while it could be anyone's Pokemon, Leon had an odd feeling that it was Raihan's Flygon, especially since the pokemon smiled happily at him from the other side of the glass. He opened the window and climbed onto the windowsill, doing his best not to look down and more importantly not to fall down since he was so high up. He let Flygon pick him up onto his back and was ready to let the pokemon take him to where Raihan was when his Rotom phone flew up from his pocket and it's eyes started flashing yellow as a message was spoken – an emergency transmission.

“ _This is an emergency transmission from the police. The Gym Leader Raihan has been found. Every hunting party that is in the proximity of the Lake of Outrage is to come in immediately and assist in his capture – coordinates were sent out to every cellular device in Galar. I repeat --”_

Leon swallowed. Raihan was in danger and Flygon was here with him! That gave everyone a huge advantage over Raihan...

“Flygon, we need to hurry!”, Leon said, glad that the Pokemon nodded in understanding and hurried onward to the Lake of Outrage. _Please be alright_ , Leon thought as he grit his teeth and closed his eyes so he wouldn't get them irritated by the oncoming wind. He needed every asset he could get to be able to rescue Raihan.


	10. Run Run Run

Leon and Flygon arrived just in time to see a mob of people gathered in a ring around the dragon hybrid. Raihan was barely visible between all the people surrounding him, but Leon would never mistake those gorgeous black and blue wings for anything else – even if they were laying limp against his back. The purple-haired male squinted his eyes and could make out a man tying Raihan's wrists together, the dragon looking completely lifeless and bloodied up...just what had happened here? Was he too late? Would Raihan even survive this ordeal? Leon had no choice but to try and rescue his boyfriend now and ask questions later – he knew they only had a small window of opportunity to get Raihan out of here and even then it would be risky. But the purple-haired male was prepared to risk everything for the dragon, even if he would be shot at and killed in the process. He knew he had no choice but to bet everything on the flying speed of the pokemon that carried him.

“Flygon, think you can swoop in and grab him quickly?”, Leon whispered, even though the people most likely couldn't hear them anyway, since nobody seemed to notice them, with their eyes glued to the man that was on the ground before them.

Leon knew that this was his last hope at saving Raihan. If he let Raihan be taken by the policemen he didn't know where they would take his boyfriend and what they would do to him. Judging by how injured Raihan was and how hell-bent they seemed on fully restraining him, their intentions weren't to simply take him in for a nice chat. Flygon nodded at Leon in understanding, beating his wings quickly and like a green thunderbolt, the pokemon dove down, grabbed onto Raihan's ankle with his arms and quickly blasted right off again. It wasn't the best position to hold Raihan and they were at risk of dislocating or breaking some bones, but getting Raihan away from the people was the number one priority. The dragon's regenerative ability along with proper care could take care of the rest.

The worry of the former champion to get hurt in the progress was ungrounded, Flygon's speed had absolutely no match and by the time the people even realized that Raihan was gone, The pokemon had already carried the two men a hundred meters away. By the time people actually started attacking them, they gained even more distance, so it was no wonder that all the attacks had missed, especially with Flygon's evasive maneuvers not making them an easy target in the first place.

“Can you carry us to Route 10?”, Leon yelled out, hoping to be heard over the air that whistled in his ears as they flew at such a high speed.

It seemed that the pokemon understood him, for he changed the course of his flight, heading for Wyndon again. Route 10 was their best bet right now since people were primarily looking for Raihan in the wild area and they couldn't risk to be found now - especially not together. The purple-haired male knew that he couldn't win against all the people that were on the lookout for Raihan, even with how good his team was. He would just land on the snowy route quickly, tend to the worst of Raihan's injuries that he could fix and then fly back to his apartment to leave Raihan there...he hated leaving his boyfriend alone again, but he had to get back to the tower or else it would be suspicious that he was gone at the same time as Raihan got rescued. Leon could only hope that nobody came in to check up on him in the time that he was gone. The secretary already went home, so hopefully nobody else would get too curious. In hindsight, Leon should have blocked access to the 99th floor to everyone but himself, but the sheer joy he felt upon seeing Flygon made him forget every bit of rationality that he might have had otherwise.

Flygon landed on the narrow path between the two cliffs on Route 10 and the purple-haired male couldn't thank the dragon enough for landing at a spot that barely any people came by. Not that many people were on that route anyway with how harsh the weather conditions were, but some hikers were still wandering the snowy paths near Wyndon – some even setting up their camp here.

Leon took a deep breath, the adrenaline of such a daring rescue stunt still pumping through his veins even though they now had a short moment of respite. His legs felt like jelly as he got off of Flygon's back, but he managed to steady himself enough to walk over to where the pokemon put Raihan down. The newly-appointed chairman glanced down at his boyfriend, who laid on his back in the snow, only now seeing just how utterly brutalized the dragon looked. Some patches of Raihan's skin were still charred, burn blisters bleeding profusely. Raihan's nose was also bleeding, so Leon did the responsible thing and turned him onto his side, gently pushing a thumb between Raihan's lips and parting them so the dragon could breathe more easily through his mouth. In doing so, he noticed that one of Raihan's wings was covered in cuts and punctured in some places – some cuts seemed to be going bone-deep, indicating a clear attempt of severing the wing. Leon took in another deep breath, trying to contain the rage that bubbled up in his stomach and shook his whole body. How could people hurt Raihan so badly when he didn't even fight back? Why did Leon protect people that were so quick to turn on someone that did nothing but good things for the region of Galar just because his appearance changed? He was so wrong to protect every single person out there with everything he had...after all, now everyone but a handful of people wouldn't even listen to what he had to say, they all gave up on a wonderful person just because he wasn't fully human. It wasn't even like Raihan had a choice in this, Leon was sure that his boyfriend would have stayed a human if he could decline being experimented on.

Leon wouldn't give Raihan up so easily.

The purple-haired male quickly took off his tailcoat and then tore the sleeves off his dress shirt, tearing them into long ribbons to make makeshift bandages.

While Leon was sure that Raihan could heal the damage on his own over time, he knew it would be best to help the recovery along by bandaging the wounds that were bleeding the most. After all, who knew when Raihan would be discovered again? He took a handful of snow and cleaned the wounds the best he could before wrapping them up. Upon seeing the blood on the white snow he realized that there was one more important reason to bandage his boyfriend up before flying to Wyndon. The blood trail would lead the police to his apartment...then again, even if the trail was gone there were still Arcanines around, sniffing every corner of the city for a trace of the dragon. So Leon would have to come up with a strategy to mask Raihan's scent if he wanted to keep the dragon in his apartment.

“Dammit...”, Leon cursed, bandaging up Raihan's cut up wing carefully before moving on to loosely wrap the burnt skin with the bandage.

Now that the taller male was as patched up as Leon could manage with the tools available to him, Leon could move on to other things, gathering the layer of snow that was bloodied up and making it into a snowball to try and conceal the scent and visibility of the blood as much as he could. He put the ball onto the ground and rolled it in the fresh white snow until there was no more red visible on the outside, all the while checking for any signs of pursuers. He knew he needed to hurry, but he couldn't get careless now. Any mistake he made could be fatal to them both. If Leon were to be discovered out here helping Raihan, they would be both past the point of saving.

Leon patted the ball of snow down near the cliff, almost seamlessly blending it into the landscape, effectively hiding the traces of Raihan's blood at least from the human eyes.. With that done, he lifted Raihan onto Flygon's back and was about to climb up as well when he heard a crunching sound, a pair of feet crushing the snow under them. The purple-haired male tensed up and climbed onto Flygon's back in a rush, speaking to the pokemon in a hushed voice.

“Please, Flygon...go as fast as you can to my apartment and land on the balcony there.”, he begged the dragon and they took off, Leon holding his boyfriend's limp body close to his own like his own life depended on it.

He wouldn't let Raihan go again now that he had him back, he was determined to protect the dragon with everything he had. This was no time to be worrying about his own safety, about being discovered and thrown in jail...if he would go down together with Raihan, so be it. He was ready to sacrifice everything for the man, to keep him by his side. Leon already had the necessary tools to hide Raihan at his home for as long as he had to. But he definitely had to look into ways to make the dragon hybrid be able to walk the streets again – he couldn't just keep his boyfriend cooped up in his penthouse forever, after all. He needed to find a way to recreate the medicine that Rose used to administer every month. Either that or somehow get the people to accept Raihan's current appearance – though the latter option seemed less realistic and even the former was very hard to achieve without any leads. But Leon was never known for giving up easily, so why should he start now?

Flygon quickly reached Leon's penthouse and landed on the balcony, after which the purple-haired male dismounted the pokemon and picked Raihan up again. Leon unlocked the balcony door and entered his apartment, letting the dragon pokemon squeeze in through the door as well before closing it again and pulling the curtains closed. The purple-haired male laid Raihan down on the king-sized bed before heading to the wardrobe and looking through the shelves. Leon first rummaged around for a new shirt, putting one on, but not discarding the one he was wearing now. It could still come in handy despite being torn – maybe he could modify it a little and let Raihan wear it, since the dragon's own clothes were missing save for his shorts. After he found the shirt, he shifted to the tip of his toes, reaching up to the top shelf of his wardrobe that was usually reserved for only the winter blanket, but now the cape from his years as the champion also laid there. It was too heavy for anyone but Leon to actually wear, so it only served as a memento to the former champion while a new, lighter cape would be custom-made for Victor. Today the old cape would fulfill another purpose though.

Leon took the cape and gently draped it over his boyfriend's sleeping form, hoping to mask most of Raihan's scent until he would return from work that way. Leon quickly disappeared to adjacent room, returning with a piece of paper and a pen, leaving a note for Raihan so he wouldn't freak out if he woke up before Leon returned. He put the paper down onto the bed next to the sleeping man and gave Raihan a small kiss on his forehead before turning to the dragon pokemon.

“Flygon, if something happens, you are in charge of protecting Raihan. If you see that it's too much for you alone to handle, grab Raihan and come to the tower like you did before. I will handle it from there.”, Leon said with a serious look on his face, gently patting the pokemon on the head. “I will try to return in two hours at most so I can take care of you two, okay?”

Leon really didn't want to leave at all, but he had to keep up the appearance of having stayed in his office if he wanted to protect Raihan..he hoped he could work from home in the coming week, he wouldn't be able to focus otherwise. He wasn't sure how quickly the dragon would recover and he couldn't simply leave Raihan alone and injured when his nesting week was just around the corner.

Flygon nodded and let out a happy noise at being patted, nudging against Leon's hand as if to tell him that he would be okay on his own. The chairman nodded and put on the tailcoat again before leaving through the balcony, this time calling his Charizard to fly back.

“Charizard, please fly as high as you can until we reach the tower. Nobody should see me fly around like this.”, Leon asked of his pokemon and Charizard immediately soared up, flying higher and higher until the air temperature was uncomfortably cold despite the sun still shining bright and the buildings of Wyndon looked like nothing more than mere pieces in a scale model. And luckily due to Leon's office being on the 99th floor, the two of them really didn't need to drop altitude by a lot to reach the still open window of Leon's office.

Carefully, the purple-haired male hoisted himself up and climbed back through the open window before recalling his trusted Pokemon and closing the window again.

Papers were strewn all around the floor, being knocked off the chairman's desk by the wind – Leon was lucky that it wasn't raining or storming today, or else his office would be in an even more sorry state.

He picked the papers up and sorted them through, putting the less important ones into a folder that he intended on taking home for later processing, while tending to the more important matters immediately. One of the papers was about a sponsor wanting to drop the league because of the bad publicity the former chairman gained with the experiments on Dynamax pokemon and Eternatus, so Leon naturally wrote a polite email to that sponsor first, asking them to reconsider. Then he sent out a mail to every other sponsor, informing them of the change with him being the new chairman and asking them to sponsor the new Champion in the next Gym Challenge as well.

With the emails sent out, Leon took care of the other problems, some being requests by the employees of the league, some being people seeking to be endorsed for the new Gym Challenge season by the chairman when the position were to be covered again - wasn't it a bit too early for that? - And finally Leon read through the last piece of paper, gritting his teeth in frustration. This was a request by an anonymous group, asking for Raihan's Gym Leader Title to be officially revoked since he “wouldn't be returning anytime soon”, as was written there.

Leon crumpled up the piece of paper in his fist and had to resist throwing it in the trash straight away – stuffing it into his pocket instead. Who had the audacity to write such a thing? The Gym Challenge has just ended and there were no contenders to take over the most challenging gym as the leader yet, so it's not like Leon could simply switch in anyone as the new leader – not that he even wanted to. It would feel so wrong to see someone else take over the Hammerlocke gym. The purple-haired male wondered if the gym assistants in Hammerlocke felt the same – he should ask them after the weekend is over. Right now his priority was Raihan, not some lunatic that thought that the title of a Gym leader meant nothing more than handing out badges to successful challengers and that Gym Leaders were easily replaceable.

Leon turned off the computer and left his office, swiping the golden elevator card key through the slit on the wall to prohibit anyone else from coming to the floor his office was on – there was no reason for anyone to go there if he wasn't in his office anyway. It was already dusk by the time he finally left the building and headed out to the store to buy some food for both him and Raihan. Leon hoped that his boyfriend wasn't too freaked out to be alone with Flygon in his apartment right now - he wanted to hurry home and see the dragon and talk to him. Though more importantly than that, he hoped that both Raihan and Flygon remained undiscovered and that he wouldn't come back just to see his penthouse being raided by the police.

However, he also knew that Raihan must be ravenous, he probably wasn't able to eat properly with how everyone was searching for him at any opportunity that they got. He had to be very careful now, after all even something as minuscule as grocery shopping could be used as evidence against him – if he bought an unusually big amount it would be suspicious. Leon was so tired of watching every move he made, of feeling like even his own shadow was just about to rat him out to the police...but he knew that Raihan had to be even more tired of being chased like that, so the former champion just pushed on, carefully selecting the groceries so that it would be enough for them both, but not as much as to be considered too much for one person. Leon would do everything to keep Raihan safe and happy inside his house until he found a permanent solution – no matter how tiring it was to keep watching his every move.


	11. Silent Scream

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW for a panic attack towards the end of the chapter

Raihan woke up and groaned as he opened his eyes, his head aching horribly from forcefully being put to sleep even though the dark room he found himself in was definitely soothing to the eyes. Despite the darkness, the dragon trainer could tell that he wasn't blindfolded by the way black shadows still stood out in the room against the midnight blue tint that came through what he assumed was a window. There was something heavy on top of him – did the people try to hold him down with whatever it was that covered his body? Where was he right now? He was very clearly on a bed, and he could move his limbs so he wasn't restrained. He shifted around and buried his nose in the sheets to get more clues as to where he was, immediately letting out a happy purr. This smelled like Leon! What happened? Was he still half asleep with his wishful thinking creating an image of being on Leon's bed? Did he die and go to heaven?

_Ha, as if._

Even if there was such a thing as God, clearly he had forsaken Raihan or else he wouldn't have to suffer that much.

The dragon carefully sat up and palmed at the thing that was weighing down on him. He knew this fabric...velvety smooth to the touch, with a high quality faux fur trim along the edges. It was Leon's cape that was draped over him – keeping him warm even with how little he was wearing. Raihan pulled on the heavy fabric and nuzzled it happily, Leon's scent enveloping him once again. His dragon tail moved in excitement and he purred again. If he was really in Leon's apartment, then Leon should be here too, right? He turned his head to the side, but saw nobody in the bed beside him. Where was Leon? Why was he alone again? Raihan's mind quickly supplied him with an answer that he didn't like.

_Leon was punished for rescuing you, he isn't here because he was found by the police. Or, even worse – Rose had forced Leon into something in exchange for your safety._

What if his mind was right? What if Leon saved him and brought him here, only to be caught by the police and taken away? Raihan tried to spread his wings to check if they had been cut to keep him trapped here, terrified to find that he couldn't fully move one of his wings. Was he right? Did the people just leave him in Leon's apartment so he would feel safer and wouldn't try to run away immediately? If so, were there people guarding the apartment now, just waiting for him to _try_ and run?

The dragon hybrid stood up and immediately regretted it. He was dizzy, every bone in his body was hurting and one of his feet wasn't taking his weight too well, pain shooting up from his ankle every time he took a step. However, Raihan's desire to know if his wings were fine outweighed his desire to lay back down to soothe the pain, so he limped away from the bed and towards the light switch. Thankfully it wasn't his first time being in Leon's bedroom, so he could find his way even in the dark.

He turned on the lights and moved to the full body mirror that stood next to the wardrobe. To his surprise, the wing wasn't cut or bound, those were simply bandages that prevented him from properly moving it. Upon further inspection, he saw that there were more bandages covering his body in places that were damaged the most. His heart skipped a beat and he inhaled shakily. Was he really safe? Raihan's heart gave a painful twinge as he felt a little hopeful again. He limped towards the bedroom door and pushed down on the handle, his heart leaping once more as he found it unlocked.

As soon as the door was open, he heard sounds coming from downstairs, indicating that someone else was in the house with him. The dragon heard the clinking of pots and pans, the sound of the kitchen hood running....and then he heard Leon's voice. It was muffled due to the kitchen being one floor below the bedroom, but it was unmistakably Leon's voice – smooth and gentle as he chatted with someone in a happy tone. Did he have guests over? It would be best to proceed with caution, he knew he shouldn't let himself be seen by anyone other than his boyfriend or else he would be put down again. Raihan carefully descended the stairs, taking one step at a time due to how dizzy he was and because he wanted to be quiet so he could listen in on whether there was anyone else in the house. He held onto the railing as he went down the last few steps, Leon's voice finally being loud enough for him to make out the words.

“I really owe you for today, buddy. I gave you quite the workout with how discreet we had to be in saving him.”

Did Leon get someone to help him? Who would willingly help Raihan after him being branded a monster?

The dragon finally reached the kitchen and carefully peeked around the corner to check out the situation without giving away that he was here. He saw Leon, who had his back turned to him, wearing a simple white shirt and black leggings, his gorgeous purple hair held in a braid as he hugged Flygon and gently patted the Pokemon's head. Charizard was also there, smiling proudly upon seeing Leon so happy again.

And Raihan couldn't help himself any longer, a small sob shaking his form as he teared up. The reality of the situation finally caught up to him – this wasn't a dream. He was saved from the people that wanted to cut off his wings and that attacked him on every occasion. He was finally reunited with Leon. The taller of the two men rushed up to Leon, ignoring the pain that shot through his whole body upon moving so quickly, stumbled a little upon losing his balance, but quickly caught himself again and hugged both Leon and Flygon from behind. Raihan started crying freely now, unable to form any words as he was overwhelmed by emotions. Only two syllables left his lips, over and over again, as if no other words existed in this universe.

“Leon....Leon...”, he whispered, inhaling deeply once again, the reassuring scent of berries, green tea and Leon's shampoo washing over him, making him cry even more. Leon's natural smell was always so reassuring and calming, but after two weeks of smelling nothing but moldy caves and his own blood, this scent was more powerful than any drug on earth, making Raihan's head spin and his legs go weak again. He was finally reunited with Leon, holding the warm, firm body in his arms. He finally felt safe again...

“I'm here, Rai.”, the purple-haired male responded, tearing up as well. Leon put his hands on top of Raihan's and Flygon quickly realized that he was unwanted in this moment, pulling away from the two men to give them some space. Almost immediately, Raihan's arms wrapped tighter around Leon's waist, as if the man would disappear otherwise.

“I won't leave you behind.”, Leon reassured, trembling in the taller male's arms as tears of joy dripped down his cheeks onto the tiled floor below. He was just so relieved to hear Raihan's voice and feel his arms around himself, he was afraid that he wouldn't get to feel Raihan's embrace so soon. Leon was worried that something changed in the two weeks that they were apart, that Raihan was angry at him for not coming earlier. “I-I'm sorry I didn't come earlier, there were so many people watching me..I just-”

“Hey, champ...don't beat yourself up over it.”, Raihan said in a weak voice, smiling a little. “Your duty would have been to help them kill me and yet you did exactly the opposite...thank you. Thank you...”

Leon's breath hitched in his throat and he suddenly felt nauseous upon hearing that. The words that Rose said had resurfaced in his mind and wrapped around his throat, stealing his breath away – he was so mad at the people that told him to kill Raihan.. He _knew_ it was the easy way out, but it hurt to even think of someone else killing the dragon, let alone Leon raising his hand against his boyfriend. “I'm not the champ anymore.”, he simply retorted to try and hide how hurt he was by what the taller male had said, he didn't want to add to Raihan's worries. Leon felt like he had been removed from his own body, as if he watched himself from afar. His lips moved on their own, betraying him as he voiced what he was thinking about despite his efforts to hide it. “I hope you didn't really think that I could hurt you after trying to protect you for so long..”

“I'm sorry...”, the dragon could obviously see that he hurt Leon with his words by the way he went stiff in his arms, so Raihan let his boyfriend go so he could walk around him and look him in the eyes. “I just...really went crazy without you – I couldn't help but think about such things...”

_And Raihan would gladly let Leon kill him._

Leon looked up, meeting Raihan's gaze. He wanted to say something, but his words got caught in his throat - when the purple-haired male looked into those beautiful cyan eyes his heart finally broke. Raihan looked nothing like the proud Gym Leader that Leon knew. His eyes were completely devoid of emotion, dark rings clearly visible under them. Leon's gaze wandered down his torso, noticing just how much thinner Raihan had become, his rib cage was visible now despite the taller male still being very muscular. Leon also noticed the new scars on Raihan's body, a lot of them being from bullet wounds, but some indicating past cuts and burns. The man really went through hell in those two weeks...

The former champion finally glanced up again, noticing something important missing. Raihan's left earring was gone and it was clear that the jewelry piece was torn out from his ear recently, the wound was still not fully healed, freshly dried blood forming a crust on his earlobe. He was being selfish by letting Raihan's words get to him, this man still had the ability to smile at him despite all the torture that he had endured. Despite the smile not reaching Raihan's eyes, Leon admired the sheer strength that his boyfriend possessed to be able to stand there and even worry about Leon. The shorter male knew that he needed to be patient, Raihan was emotionally unstable and didn't say things to hurt him intentionally. He took a deep breath to calm down again, smiling softly at his boyfriend.

“I was close to becoming crazy without you too...”, the purple-haired male finally admitted, leaning up to press his lips against Raihan's gently. He tasted blood on them, but it didn't make him turn away. Instead he languidly moved his lips against Raihan's, only pulling away after a few more moments. “I'm glad that you're here now.”

“I'm also glad...this just still feels so unreal, to be together with you after all that...”, Raihan admitted, shaking his head. “But I guess I'm not dreaming, huh? So, would you fill me in on what happened out here in the human world while I was hiding away in caves?”

“Wouldn't you rather talk about it over dinner? I cooked some pasta for us and for our Pokemon as well.”, Leon offered and Raihan's stomach gave off a loud growl, which was all the response that Leon needed. He headed over to the pot that had been simmering slowly, turned off the stove and put some oven mittens on, straining the pasta of its water and serving it onto multiple plates, after which he put the sauce over it.

Raihan blushed and limped over to the drawer where Leon kept the cutlery, getting out the utensils that they would need. In just a few moments, the two of them were sitting at the table in the dining room while their Pokemon ate in the kitchen so that the two of them could have some time to catch up and honestly, Flygon and Charizard needed some time to catch up as well. The dragon ate slowly despite how hungry he was, so he wouldn't upset his stomach with too much food. Instead, he listened to Leon intently, letting the information sink in and giving Leon a lopsided grin when he was done.

“So, you're the new chairman? Always reaching higher and higher – that's so like you.”, Raihan said, putting his fork down after he ate just about a quarter of what was on his plate. He couldn't really stomach any more right now and he hoped Leon wasn't offended by that. After all, he loved Leon's cooking and usually went for seconds. “Shall I stop calling you champ and start saying 'Sir' then?”

The purple-haired male almost choked on his food as he heard his boyfriend say that. “Please don't. That is a little too much. In fact, I don't really mind when you call me champ, so you can just keep doing that...”, Leon continued eating once he got an affirmative nod from the taller male. “Besides, I only took on the position because Rose left some of the documents about you on his computer and I just couldn't let anyone else have that information.”

“I see...”, Raihan said, swallowing hard. Leon was doing so much for him and he worried that his boyfriend would come and try to kill him? He felt like scum for even remotely thinking about it. Still, he couldn't stop the dark thoughts from coming, this whole ordeal still wasn't over. “What do you plan to do if I get discovered here? You can't possibly think that I won't be found just because I'm not in the wild area any more.”

In fact, it was even more dangerous for Raihan to be here in the city. Not only was it harder for him to hide, but it was nigh impossible to flee in case of an emergency due to how many people were in Wyndon and due to the distinctive coloration of Raihan's wings and tail. And now it wouldn't only affect Raihan, Leon would face a severe punishment for harboring him inside his house when all people cared about was capturing or killing the dragon.

Leon shook his head and smiled a little, but something was off about that smile, Raihan couldn't feel the usual warmth behind it. “Just let me worry about that and focus on resting up, alright?”

The dragon looked down, avoiding the amber eyes that sought his. Judging by the fact that Leon didn't give him a straight answer, it could only mean one of two things. Either Leon didn't think that far ahead and was trying to console him with empty words, or - the more terrifying option – he didn't want to tell Raihan about it because his plan was protecting Raihan _at all costs_. Somehow it terrified him. Just imagining Leon – the literal sunshine, the man that was all about protecting others – hurting people because of him made Raihan's stomach plummet.

He wasn't worth it, he wasn't worth such a big sacrifice. He was just a lab rat that should have died years ago but didn't quite succumb to his injuries. He should have killed himself in the wild area when he was too weak to regenerate, he should have let the hunting party finish him off, then everyone would have a happy ending and Leon would have stayed pure and happy now that he was free of Rose's influence.

The taller male's lip trembled and he hiccuped, a pathetic whimper leaving his throat as his eyes watered again. Despite him being awake and clearly looking at Leon, all Raihan could see were the possible scenarios of him being found, being hurt or killed... just to have Leon come in and burn everyone down. Raihan wasn't even sure what he was afraid of anymore, was it really so scary to see Leon sacrifice everything for him? Wasn't that what he wished for? Everything would be so much easier if he were dead, then he wouldn't have to be scared now, he wouldn't weigh Leon down with these stupid emotions.. The dragon's mind screamed at him to just tell Leon what he was thinking about, the words already formed in his mind and threatened to just spill out of his mouth.

_You should have let me die._

_You should have let me die._

_**Just let me die and free yourself from this burden.** _

And yet those words got stuck in Raihan's throat, his vocal cords cramping up, forming a painful lump in his throat. He tried swallowing to free himself from it, but he failed, the lump only getting bigger and robbing him of the oxygen that his body was so desperately craving. He felt like he was drowning, his breathing coming out in short gasps as he struggled to get air into is system. He could distantly hear a voice calling out to him, but he couldn't answer, his voice failing him still. The dragon clawed at his neck, scratching it raw in an attempt to get it to work again, but all he managed to achieve in doing so was making himself bleed more. He felt someone grab his wrists, pulling them away from his neck, a fierce grip around them.

_No, he didn't want that – He didn't want to be held down again...!_

Raihan struggled against the hold on his wrists, desperate to get away, to break free. He tried spreading his wings to escape, but something held his wing back from spreading fully. A sharp pain spread from his wing all across his body – that's right, the policeman wanted to cut his wing to keep him down, he had to get out of here, quickly! The more the dragon struggled, the more his vision blurred around the edges as his body began to shut down due to the lack of oxygen. He saw the grins of the people from the hunting party, all of them laughing at the fallen dragon, eager to see him suffer more. He felt warmth enclose him – suddenly the grins of the people were engulfed by an orange flame and Raihan saw a single man stand there, his grin more wicked than that of any other person. He had a dragon-like pokemon by his side which stood proudly next to its owner. He caught a glimpse of purple hair before he got too dizzy and succumbed to the darkness, his consciousness fading once more.


	12. Care

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I heard you subscribed for "Lots of hurt, little comfort" for the next few chapters? :'D

Leon wasn't sure what to do when Raihan started panicking seemingly out of nowhere. When he saw his boyfriend's breathing get irregular and frantic, he tried to simply call out to him and bring him back to reality with his voice, but it didn't work – instead the dragon started clawing at his throat, his nails digging into the tan skin and ripping it open as he dragged them down. Leon knew that he couldn't just sit still and hope that his voice would reach the dragon, he couldn't risk him seriously injuring himself. He jumped up and ran over to Raihan, standing behind the raven-haired male as he grabbed his wrists and pulled them away from his neck to prevent Raihan from hurting himself any more.

But even this proved to be a wrong move as Raihan started begging him to let him go, to stop hurting him – all the while struggling against the hold Leon had on him. The more Raihan struggled, the more wounds were opening up and bleeding again – most notably on the wing that had been bandaged up as the bandages dug into the cuts upon Raihan trying to spread his wings. Leon tried again to talk to the man that was panicking, hoping that this time his words would reach Raihan. He never had to deal with anyone having a panic attack, so what could he do besides try and calm Raihan down?

Yet again, his voice was lost on Raihan, this time the taller male seemed to be unable to hear Leon at all.. The only thing left that Leon could try was to simply hug Raihan in the hopes that his scent and presence was enough to calm Raihan down at last. Leon wrapped his arms around Raihan's shoulders and pulled him close, ignoring the blood that got on his shirt as he did so. He rejoiced as his attempt at calming Raihan down seemed to work - he felt the taller male relax in his arms, his struggle attempts dying down and his body leaning against Leon's own. Raihan's breathing also seemed to completely even out again, to which the purple-haired male let out a sigh of relief.

“You really gave me a scare there, Raihan. What made you panic in the first place?”

He didn't get an answer and his boyfriend didn't move, his body was completely limp in Leon's arms.

“Raihan?”

Leon gently pushed his boyfriend back to take a better look at him, seeing his head droop down and his body immobile. Yet, he was still breathing and despite his heartbeat still being very quick, it didn't seem irregular otherwise. Raihan was so scared that he passed out from it...just what had triggered such a strong reaction in him? No matter what it was that made Raihan panic like that, Leon knew that he had to take good care of his boyfriend now. Wash and re-bandage all the wounds, maybe get him a change of clothes and put him to bed. Never before in his life was Leon so glad to be have remained diligent with his work-out. No normal person could lift Raihan up and carry him up the stairs on their own, even with how much weight he had lost over the two weeks.  
  
The ex-champion carried the dragon to his bathroom upstairs, setting Raihan down inside the bathtub and leaning him back to rest against the tub itself as he took off the blood-stained bandages before they could cling to his wounds again. As he unwrapped the bandages around Raihan's wing, he started wondering how to properly wash it. Charizard didn't like his wings being touched at all and both Haxorus and Dragapult didn't have any wings, so Leon had absolutely no clue if there was some special technique to cleaning the wings...

“Rotom!”, Leon called out and the pokemon-imbued device came flying over to him at lightning speed. “Please look up on how to wash a Pokemon's wings.”

“Alright, brzzt!”, the Rotom chirped and it took a few more seconds for him to speak again. “I've found a video tutorial by a Pokemon breeder, brzzt! Would you like to watch it?”

“Yes, please play the video, Rotom.”, Leon said, removing Raihan's shorts while the video loaded up. He watched the man on the screen explain in great detail how different types of wings were meant to be cared for and – thank Arceus – he also showed it on a Charizard, whose wing type almost exactly matched Raihan's.

“ _You need to remember to gently hold the wing by the small bone at the very edge and pull the wing outwards to clean it with your free hand – holding the wing by the root is not practical and is a common way between dragons to communicate a threat. It is their way of saying 'It would be easy to kill you right now, so you better leave my territory.' So, treat your pokemon with respect when you take care of them.”_

“Well, no wonder Charizard won't let me anywhere near his wings.”, Leon chuckled a little and turned on the tap, letting the water run for him to dip a sponge into it so he could gently wash Raihan's body. “Thanks, Rotom. You can go rest in my bedroom now.”

“No problem, brzzt! Is that blood I see? Should I call an ambulance for you?”

“No, thank you, Rotom. It's nothing I can't handle.”, Leon said, even though he himself found it less than believable. If only he could get Raihan to a hospital and get him the proper medical attention that he needed...but he had nobody but himself to rely on right now.

He continued diligently washing his boyfriend's cuts and scratches, going all the way until the water in the tub was clear and most of the blood that was visible on Raihan's body was gone. He turned off the tap again and let the taller male sit in the bathtub for a little longer as he got the towel from the towel rack and a fresh pack of bandages from his first-aid kit. Only when he had these items on standby did Leon finally lift Raihan out of the tub again, glad that he didn't change out of the bloodied-up shirt since he got it wet by letting Raihan's limp body rest against his own as he gently dabbed him dry with the towel. He avoided rubbing the skin so that the burn blisters wouldn't start bleeding again. Leon then sat Raihan down on the closed toilet lid, neatly bandaging up the wounds again so that no dirt would get into them. With that done, he put the rest of the bandages back into his first-aid kit for later use and picked Raihan up again, putting his naked form down onto the bed and covering him with the cape again so he wouldn't get cold.

Leon didn't lay down next to him though, picking up the sleeveless shirt that was laying beside the bed and observing it as he tried to come up with something that would fit Raihan. The purple-haired male hummed in thought, wondering what a good design for someone with wings could be. Obviously, the back had to be cut out to fit the wings comfortably, but Leon needed a way for the collar of the dress shirt to fit that design as well, he didn't want to just cut it entirely. Leon quickly realized that it wouldn't make much sense to put all the work into modifying the shirt as he intended it to look. It would be much easier to just get a 'virgin killer' sweater and be done with the topic of clothes, the sleeveless shirt wouldn't offer much more coverage than that and the thin material of the shirt wouldn't give off as much warmth as the sweater would...he should ask Raihan if he was ready to wear something like that or if he preferred not to wear anything from the waist up. For now, the shirt would go to the scrap bin unless Raihan preferred the shirt over the revealing sweater.

The purple-haired male stood up and headed to the wardrobe, digging through it in search for the underwear and pants that Raihan left here when he was visiting, quickly finding a pair of orange boxer briefs and black sweatpants with a pokeball design printed on them in white. The former champion pulled back the cover that was his cape, putting the underwear and pants on Raihan. Honestly, Leon would rather not do any of this, including washing him since it was kind of an invasion of privacy, but he didn't want Raihan's injuries to get infected and he also wanted to keep his boyfriend warm, knowing how easily he got cold. It was a real wonder that Raihan could even survive the two weeks out in the wild while wearing only shorts. Probably his Pokemon had kept him warm during the time otherwise the dragon would probably be unable to spend such a long time in harsh climates that were common for the wild area.

Speaking of the Pokemon...where were they now? Leon only saw Flygon out and about...was the rest of Raihan's team even here or did they get left behind?

Leon went to the bathroom and picked up Raihan's shorts, rummaging in the pockets to find Raihan's Rotom phone and to his relief he also found four Pokeballs, pressing the button on one of them to release the Pokemon, shocked to find a battered up and fainted Goodra inside. Judging by the fact that neither of the pokemon that were hidden in their pokeballs had come out to check on Raihan when the dragon was clearly unwell they had to be in a similar shape.

Well, damn...

It's not like Leon could simply bring these pokemon to the Pokemon Center and ask for them to be healed, everyone knew what Raihan's team looked like... Leon did have enough Revives and Potions to heal the team up, but he had no Ethers, so it wasn't exactly the same as going to the Pokemon Center would be. But it was better than nothing and Raihan's pokemon would no doubt be happy to see that their trainer was safe above everything else, so Leon went back to his bedroom and pulled out his medicine bag for Pokemon, hurrying back to the fainted Goodra to revive her and heal her up, repeating the progress for the other three pokemon as well. The four Pokemon were thankful to Leon, all showing their affection in their own ways – with Goodra pulling Leon into a slimy hug. One more reason Leon was glad he hasn't changed his shirt yet. As much as he loved Raihan's Goodra, he would rather not go to bed in a wet shirt, so he used the opportunity and gave all the Pokemon a lot of cuddles and smooches on the head, ignoring how his shirt got wet from Goodra's slimy body or dirty from Torkoal's sand-covered head. When the pokemon seemed satisfied with the attention they were given, Leon took off the shirt he was currently wearing and put on a new one. This was the shirt that Raihan has given him as a joke gift for his birthday. The shirt had the same blue color that the Hammerlocke Gym uniform did and Raihan's signature was printed on it across the chest in white, popping against the dark fabric.

After changing, Leon headed back to the bedroom and sat down on the edge of the bed, looking down to his boyfriend. He smiled as he saw how peaceful Raihan's face looked – it seemed like Raihan was finally able to rest. Upon taking a closer look however, Leon noticed that Raihan was crying. He wasn't trembling or sobbing, but fresh tears made their way down the Gym Leader's cheeks, dripping down onto the white sheets below as the dragon curled up into himself. Sometimes Leon wished he could enter other people's dreams, just so he could resolve the nightmares that the people had. Instead, all Leon could do was gently stroke through Raihan's dark locks, careful to not hurt himself or Raihan by accidentally brushing against his horns.

That action didn't calm Raihan down, instead the dragon woke up and glanced up at the purple-haired male.

“Ah...Leon, it's you..”, the taller of the two said in a weak voice, rubbing his eyes to wipe away his tears, as if crying in front of Leon wasn't allowed.

The purple-haired male frowned in thought, looking at his boyfriend in confusion. That statement was really peculiar. Of course it was him, did Raihan expect someone else? Did he have a nightmare? Despite the clear confusion on his face, Leon didn't stop carding trough Raihan's hair in an attempt to console Raihan. “Yes, it's me...did you have a bad dream?”

“Kind of...”, Raihan said, but didn't elaborate further on that. Instead he pointed at Leon's shirt and grinned lazily as he switched the topic. “Didn't expect you to still have this, let alone wear it.”

“Hey, this was a gift from you! I would never throw something like that away!”, Leon protested and leaned closer to Raihan, smiling a little. He decided that it was for the best to steer away from dark topics for now, even if he really wanted to know what made Raihan cry like that and what made him have a panic attack – he didn't want to risk another one since he didn't know how to deal with that yet. He should look it up later..“Besides, you don't have any other merchandise..your PR team was really sleeping on that opportunity.”

“Not like anyone but you would even want to wear anything with my branding on it anyway.”, Raihan shook his head, noticing how something strained around his neck as he moved. His hands wandered to the neck, carefully touching whatever was there, feeling bandages covering the area under his fingertips. “You really patched me up while I was out, huh?”

“I did...and I'm sorry if it's invading your privacy, but--”

“Leon, we're dating. You already saw everything there is to see on my body.”, the taller male interrupted, smiling gently, but Leon could see the emptiness and hurt in those blue eyes. “I really owe you for that. Sorry if I scared you by passing out like that.”

Leon swallowed and let himself fall onto the bed right next to Raihan. How he would love to say that it was more than just a minor scare, that he was absolutely terrified when he saw Raihan scratch his skin until it broke and how his heart ached when he heard Raihan actually  _ beg _ to be let go. The proud Gym Leader that never made any compromises, who stood above every other Gym Leader in Galar – reduced to a trembling, crying mess was something that Leon truthfully didn't know how to deal with.

But instead of saying all those things he simply pulled Raihan into a hug and smiled a little. “It's fine. If you feel comfortable with telling me what caused such a strong reaction though, I'd like to know that.”

Raihan pressed his own body closer to Leon's and tried to recall why he had such a strong reaction in the first place. When he remembered the grins of the townspeople and the way the old man looked down on him when his Shiinotic put him to sleep his heartbeat quickened again and his breath caught in his throat. He really was just afraid of the people finding him again, which was very likely to happen.. “I-I...”, he stuttered, trying to force his feelings out for Leon to hear, trembling as his voice failed him and more painful memories flooded his head. Why was it so hard to say? It's nothing that Leon didn't know already and yet the words just completely failed Raihan. “I'm sorry- I c-can't...!”

“Shh, Rai..”, Leon cooed gently and stroked Raihan's hair again. “It's fine. You don't have to force anything, take your time until you are comfortable talking about it, alright?”

The dragon nodded and started crying again, trembling in Leon's arms as he finally hugged back. He didn't know what he did to deserve such an understanding and supportive boyfriend.. “Thank you...thank you so much...”

As Raihan broke down, Leon simply continued holding him in his arms, gently stroking the taller male's hair and cooing to him reassuringly. However, Leon couldn't help but tear up a little himself as he heard his boyfriend cry like that. He was glad that Raihan couldn't see his face with the taller male pressing his face against his chest or else Raihan would most likely worry that he was dragging Leon down. Leon continued reassuring Raihan the best he could, gently whispering words of encouragement in hopes of calming Raihan down.“You're okay. You're okay, Rai. You are safe here..”

Somehow, even Leon started believing those words the more he repeated them...

_Even though he knew it couldn't be further from the truth._


	13. Fall Deeper Into Despair

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is dark, like really, really dark. T/W for depression and suicidal thoughts

Raihan's night was still plagued by nightmares despite all the reassuring words Leon said, despite the purple-haired male still holding him in a warm embrace.

Raihan dreamed of hands reaching out to grab him, weapons swinging at him and worst of all, he dreamed that Leon was being held down by the people that chased him. Leon was forced to kneel and watch as the people mutilated Raihan's body, dissecting him like some live anatomy model – cutting him apart limb by limb. Due to those dreams haunting him, Raihan couldn't help but wake up every time he heard even the slightest noise downstairs, even though he knew that Charizard and Flygon were both down there and that the noises were probably made by them. Every time he heard something akin to footsteps, his eyes shot open and his heartbeat quickened, his dragon self screaming at him to get up and protect his mate.

His mind was absolutely restless despite him usually being a heavy sleeper during the nesting week, forcing him to remain awake all the way till the sunlight was peeking through the small slit between the curtains, which was when Raihan couldn't simply keep lying around in bed. He carefully wiggled himself free from Leon's embrace, making sure that Leon remained asleep as he stood up and limped out of the room, heading for the bathroom. When Raihan looked into the mirror, he wanted to laugh at how absolutely pathetic the reflection staring back at him was. No way Leon would believe that he slept through the night like that and he really didn't want to worry his boyfriend even more – Leon had bigger things to worry about now that he was the chairman.

So, Raihan did what he did best – faking that he was okay. He washed his eyes with cold water to reduce the puffiness and the redness of them, opening the bathroom cabinet to get the vast array of makeup that Leon was keeping there, using the color correction pen to hide the rings under his eyes. And thank Arceus...there was also the concealer that Raihan left here when he had last visited. With masterful precision, Raihan covered up the rings completely and carefully hid all the makeup again. Thankfully he always had to look his best when he still was the gym leader, so he knew his way with makeup and how to make it look absolutely natural so that nobody could tell that he was feeling unwell or tired. Raihan was used to wearing that mask of makeup, with a wide grin always plastered on his face. He could definitely pull it off this time again...right?

_Who was he kidding, Leon could always read him like a book._

Raihan sighed heavily and leaned onto the sink, maintaining eye contact with his reflection. He saw the hollow ice-blue eyes staring back at him, he saw the horns protrude from his head and the tips of the wings were also still visible from the angle that he viewed himself at. He really was an abomination, he wondered why Leon even fell in love with someone like him. Leon was so flawless in everything he did and his looks were truly a sight to behold. He looked like a deity with that flowing long purple hair and his toned body that looked like it was sculpted by the finest artists on earth. Raihan was fine with his own body shape, but the body was marred with scars, he liked his own face shape, but even without the dragon features showing people commented on how inhuman he looked. Usually people commented on his sharp canines or his glowing blue eyes, saying how it was abnormal for a human to look like that.

And now, with the wings, tail and horns sprouting from his body...he really was a misfit. Raihan couldn't bear looking at himself in the mirror any longer, so he looked away quickly. He then took one of Leon's hairbands and pulled his hair into a messy bun so it wouldn't fall in his face before heading downstairs. He threaded carefully so he wouldn't put too much weight onto the hurt ankle, pulling all the curtains in the lower area of the house closed as well so nobody would have a chance to see him through the windows – even though the notion was absolutely ridiculous due to how high up Leon's apartment was in the first place.

Still, Raihan wouldn't risk anything. After he was done with the curtains, he headed to the kitchen, set on making his boyfriend a nice breakfast to thank him for the care and effort that he put into trying to fix Raihan. Any sane person would give up on the dragon at this point, any person other than Leon would have told him how much of a burden he was and how absolutely disgusting he was before they handed the dragon over to the authorities or disposed of him themselves. Leon was a real saint, he didn't give up on Raihan even though Raihan had given up on himself a long time ago.

_He didn't deserve Leon. He made Leon's life a real hell._

But Raihan knew that the purple-haired male would simply deny it if he could hear his thoughts, so Raihan kept it all to himself, never speaking aloud those dark thoughts that lingered in his mind for years now. Leon would have had a normal life, sheltered from this much harm if it wasn't for Raihan. The dragon knew that Leon's relationship with his mother had soured when she learned that the two of them were still hanging out as adults. Raihan didn't blame Leon's mother for disliking him, they only met when he was still a kid and even then, the only impression she had of him was this creepy child that came into her house and started begging strangers for food. He had been a leech back then and he knew that he was being a leech now as well – a parasite that ate away at Leon's mental stability and his material possessions. Leon had once again taken him in, offering him shelter and food when nobody else did. The least Raihan could do in return was take care of the chores and let Leon rest up as much as possible.

He headed to the kitchen to get started on breakfast and saw not only Charizard and Flygon there, but he also saw the rest of his team lounging in the living room.

When the pokemon heard footsteps, they stirred awake and checked if it was from an intruder, perking up at the sight of their trainer. They all jumped up and hurried to the kitchen. Seeing that Raihan couldn't help but meet them halfway, especially since Torkoal and Goodra struggled to keep up with the rest of the team since they were slower than the rest of them. He gave them all gentle pats on the head and snuggles, happy to be reunited with them. And no doubt that was also all thanks to Leon, after all Raihan's revives and potions were all lost when his hoodie was torn apart, so the purple-haired male must have used the medicine from his own stash.

“I'm glad you guys are fine again.”, he said with a feeble smile tugging on his lips. He _was_ genuinely happy that his pokemon were all here and weren't taken by the police by the time Leon arrived to save him and yet at the same time he couldn't help his heart hurting in a way that he was all too familiar with. “I'm sorry I wasn't strong enough to protect us all.”, he said in a quieter voice as he hugged Duraludon.

His Pokemon were looking at him with a certain sadness in their eyes when they heard their trainer sound so utterly defeated. Raihan knew that look by now – it was pity. It was the same look that he got from Leon back when they were kids, when Raihan told that he had no place that he could call home. Well, at least that changed now. He had a home now, it was right here with Leon. It wasn't a safe home, but neither was it safe for him to sleep in the wild area. And here he could at least be sure that Leon was safe instead of pondering of what punishment may befall Leon for protecting him.

“Sorry for being so sappy...”, he said and forced a smile again so that his pokemon wouldn't worry. “I bet you guys are all hungry...I will get started on breakfast right away.”

He knew he didn't convince his companions, but Raihan chose to ignore the worried looks they gave him right before he headed back to the kitchen. Instead of dwelling on it, Raihan chose to focus on cooking, completely fixating his brain on the task at hand so that he wouldn't get any intrusive dark thoughts. It was easier to just shut out the thoughts completely than to try and deal with his feelings. Raihan knew he wasn't good at that – he would usually end up just crying through the day if he tried to face his feelings head-on. He became good at bottling everything up and just acting like he was fine – cracking jokes to hide his insecurities.

Raihan didn't even notice how his lips automatically melted into his signature grin as he finished up the breakfast. Nothing too fancy, just eggs and toast with some bacon and a coffee for both him and Leon. He made a little less for himself than for Leon, so that he wouldn't waste as much as he did at dinner yesterday. After he set the table and put some food out for the pokemon, he slowly went upstairs again to wake Leon up, only to see the man already coming down the stairs.

“Good morning, champ!”, the taller of the two gave his usual greeting and saw Leon smile softly at the familiarity.

“Good morning, Rai!”, Leon gave a greeting back, sounding energized despite his appearance leading one to assume otherwise.

Leon's hair was a mess and so were his clothes – with the shirt riding up a little to reveal a slight bit of hip. Upon taking a closer look, Raihan realized that there were creases on Leon's cheek from where he laid down on the pillow...somehow it was really endearing. The dragon turned to take the few steps back down, but not before he turned to Leon once more.

“Come along, I made breakfast!”, he offered and went on ahead, sitting down in the dining room and waiting for his boyfriend.

Leon sat down across of Raihan and couldn't help noticing how little the dragon had on his plate. His breath hitched for a second, but he didn't comment on that. _It's fine_ – Leon told himself – _He will eat more as time goes on, it's better for him to not upset his stomach._ Instead of saying any of it though, the purple-haired male smiled at Raihan in gratitude. “Thank you for doing this for me, Rai! I haven't had a breakfast made by you in quite a long time!”

Raihan nodded. The last time was the day Rose destroyed their future – Raihan had cooked Leon breakfast as a good luck charm for his match, saying that with it, he would definitely win. But obviously, that never came to pass.. “I thought you might need a good luck charm before heading to the office today. When are you heading out?”

The dragon did his best to keep his voice steady, he didn't want Leon to know how absolutely terrifying the thought of being alone in this apartment was. He wasn't yet back to full health, he couldn't protect himself or his pokemon in his current state. So when he heard Leon's reply, he let out a breath he didn't realize he was holding.

“I will stay at home today and tomorrow. There is nobody at the tower right now, so I don't have to be there either. I'll head back on Monday and then try and work from home starting Tuesday..”, Leon explained as he took a sip of his coffee. Raihan made it just the way Leon liked it – one cube of sugar and a little bit of cream. But despite him focusing so much on the taste of his coffee, he didn't miss the way Raihan seemed to relax a little upon hearing the news. 

The dragon was quick to hide his relief behind a teasing remark though, just so Leon wouldn't question it. “Well, would you look at that. The chairman life seems to treat you better than the champion life did. You even have a weekend like normal people do.”

“That's right. But I am only starting out, I'm sure it won't be as relaxing once the sponsors start contacting me and such.”, Leon started eating even though Raihan hasn't touched his food or drink yet. “Rai, can I ask you a question?”

Raihan finally decided to start eating even though he didn't feel hungry, at least to maintain his facade of being fine for Leon. “Sure, ask away.”

“How come you are awake before me?”, Leon asked and his golden eyes darted up to look into Raihan's. 

The dragon felt Leon stare right into his soul and he had to pull himself together so he wouldn't flinch or look away as he told his lie. “It just happens. I'm used to waking up early because of those two weeks of being constantly on the run, so--”

“Do you think I'm stupid, Raihan?”, The purple-haired male asked in a stern voice and despite him being over a head shorter than the dragon trainer, Raihan never felt so small. When Raihan didn't answer and even went so far as to avert his gaze, Leon frowned. “Look at me, Raihan.” 

The taller male refused at first because he felt guilty for lying, but when Leon didn't avert his gaze from him, the dragon's blue eyes finally met Leon's gaze again. Only then did the purple-haired male speak again. “I have been around you for thirteen years now. I  _ know _ that you always start nesting on this exact date – especially when you are surrounded by scents that are familiar and reassuring. Hell, even if you weren't, you'd just sleep on the damn floor of the Hammerlocke Gym.”

Leon continued eating when he saw that Raihan seemed to understand that lying to Leon was pointless – he looked like a kid that had just stolen some cookies and was reprimanded by his parents for it. Still, the taller male remained silent as he guiltily stared at his plate. Thus, Leon decided to give him one more push, speaking a little gentler this time. “Raihan, you know I am always there to listen to your troubles – I've been ever since we were kids. But I can't just guess what is wrong with you, so please, just tell me what happened that made you wake up so early on what is supposed to be the laziest day in your nesting week.”

“I just...had a very bad dream, Lee.”, Raihan decided that saying a part of the truth was fine. Leon wouldn't see how utterly anxious, broken and useless he felt from just him telling about his dream. “I dreamed of being found, being held down by people that I couldn't see and...you were too, held down by the same group of people.” And then there was the part where Leon was forced into a kneeling position - people grabbing that beautiful purple hair and roughly yanking it every time Leon tried to look away from the inhumane things that were happening to the dragon. But Raihan decided to spare Leon the details and frankly he wasn't sure if he could say them out loud without his emotions swallowing him whole again. He didn't want to have a panic attack and faint again – he was being a burden as is. “I guess I just don't feel safe enough to sleep after that.”

Leon hummed in thought. Raihan was right, it was definitely not safe here for either of them. But now that he got Raihan here, leaving wasn't an option that was so easily attainable. Was honesty the best policy here? Should he tell Raihan that he also deemed this place not safe to stay in for a prolonged period of time, that he was just waiting for the door to be kicked in by armed policemen? 

“Well, Raihan...I-”

“You don't have to say it.”, the dragon interrupted and let his fork fall down to the plate again. He didn't feel like eating anything anymore, despite barely having eaten more than a bite, most of his food still remaining on his plate. “As you said, I know you aren't stupid, Leon. There are people searching for me day and night and the policemen have a fresh sample of my scent on their hands too.” Raihan's fingers absentmindedly went to touch the wound from where his ear piercing once was. “They can now find me by the smell of my blood too – and remind me what my dumbass self has done yesterday? That's right, I scratched at my throat until it was bleeding.”

“It's not your fault, you panicked, you weren't thinking straight...”, Leon tried to console him, but Raihan shook his head and his fake smile finally fell again.

“It's just a matter of time until they are here. And that's not mindless paranoia, it's a fact.”, Raihan said and offered his plate to the Pokemon, who still seemed hungry despite having just eaten. They both watched as the pokemon shared the remainder of what was on Raihan's plate before leaving the two trainers alone again.

Yet, despite being given privacy, Leon and Raihan didn't talk any more, their breakfast was finished in an awkward silence, with neither of the men being sure of what else to say. Leon knew he had to prepare some sort of countermeasure for when they were inevitably found out, but he wasn't sure what to do. It wasn't like he could just solve everything by battling, basically all of Galar were their opponents at this point and even with the two of them fighting side by side, Leon knew they couldn't win. 

_ Maybe Leon shouldn't have saved Raihan after all?  _

No, that wasn't it. Leon knew he loved Raihan too much to just let him die alone. But he also knew that he bit off more than he could chew when he dove headfirst into saving Raihan. There were just too many things stacked against him. The people of Galar wouldn't give up their pursuit, there was little chance of recreating the medication that Rose has given Raihan without any clues as to where to start...and Raihan himself made it really clear that he only lived for Leon anyway, not that it was much different for Leon himself.

_ Wouldn't it be better for them both to just die at this point if all they did was living for each other? _


	14. Shadows Make the Light Seem Brighter

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW for a suicide attempt, nothing graphic though

Raihan noticed that their relationship was strained after they had that conversation in the morning. Leon had barely talked to him, seemingly brooding over something and even when the dragon called him out on that, Leon wouldn't budge. He had that thoughtful frown that Raihan knew well by now, he had come to some sort of a conclusion all by himself and was currently thinking it through from all angles. The taller male knew he shouldn't pressure Leon while he was like this, but he couldn't help himself. After all, Leon had pressured him to speak about his worries too..

Granted, Raihan didn't tell his boyfriend everything, but Leon didn't tell him _anything_ about what made him look like he was stressing over something. The purple-haired male was stressing over whatever was on his mind all alone and the dragon didn't like it.

“Lee, I thought we were in this together?”, Raihan asked as he looked up from the book he was reading when Leon sighed for what felt like the 100th time. “Tell me what's on your mind. If you have an idea for solution to this situation, I'll do all I can to help you...”

Leon met Raihan's gaze and contemplated if he should say what he was thinking. He _did_ have a solution, a _permanent_ solution at that... and he was sure that Raihan would gladly commit suicide with him – the dragon said that he would do anything Leon wanted him to do. Furthermore, Leon knew that Raihan was more broken than he let on, that he was just waiting for Leon to let him die – he has been waiting for that ever since they were kids..

But at the same time it felt so wrong to tell Raihan to just die after suffering for thirteen whole years. Saying out loud what he was thinking would give Raihan the sign that even Leon had given up on him and his life. It would be like saying that there was no more salvation waiting for Raihan except for the _ultimate salvation._ So, with a heavy heart, Leon just turned away again and went to work on the stack of papers that he still had to go through for work.

“I don't have a solution. That's why I'm trying to think of one..”, he lied, maintaining a straight face so this time Raihan didn't call him out on that – or maybe Raihan knew that Leon was thinking of giving up, just waiting for him to put it into words? Either way, the ex-champion was glad that Raihan let it slide.

The dragon trainer gave up on trying to learn the answer and left Leon's study entirely without saying anything else, which made it a little bit easier for Leon to breathe again. He was so close to giving up. If he gave up, Raihan wouldn't have any hope left in this world...just what was Leon thinking when he came up with such a bad solution?

_I must protect him by whatever means necessary._

While Leon thought that, he didn't completely dismiss the original idea, putting it down as a last resort. If he tried everything else and failed, they could still die...but until then, the purple-haired male decided that he would try everything in his power to prevent that from happening. Leon let out another sigh as he leaned back in his chair and looked up to the ceiling, like some deeper meaning was written on the white panels that covered it. He knew he couldn't focus on work like this, but he also knew he had to bring results or else he wouldn't be the league chairman for much longer. He remained sitting like that until he heard Raihan's voice from the bedroom, which tore him out of his thoughts momentarily.

“Hey, I'm gonna do the laundry. Anything I should wash along with the things in the wash basket?”

Leon hummed in thought before he called back to his boyfriend “You should be resting, not working.” Despite this remark, Raihan didn't budge, so Leon relented fairly quickly. “But if you really insist, you can wash the beige pants that I wore to work yesterday, they got a little dirty in my rescue mission.”  
  
Raihan nodded a little and took the said pants. It was really sweet that Leon worried about him so much...and yet the dragon knew he wouldn't be able to rest with how hyperactive his mind was, with the dark thoughts just waiting for him to lay down and take a rest so that they could take over. Usually, Raihan would always have work or selfies to distract him from his depression taking the high ground on him...but now that he didn't have either to distract him since he had to lay low and just hide in Leon's apartment for God knows how long, chores were the only way left to keep himself busy. So, he gathered the clothes in the bin that were matching the beige tone of Leon's jodhpurs and started checking the pockets before loading the clothes into the washing machine. He found a lot of little things that Leon forgot in his pockets – hair ties, loose change, the occasional train ticket. And then he checked the beige pants' pockets and found a crumpled up piece of paper. It was fairly large and Raihan could see that it had the league's logo on it.

Was it more work that Leon just didn't feel like doing? Some useless junk mail that Leon just forgot to throw away? Raihan's curiosity got the better of him and he unfurled the sheet of paper, reading what was written on it....though he immediately wished he hadn't.

_To whomever it may concern within the League,_

_It has been two weeks since Gym Leader Raihan turned into that monster, just how long are you planning to let him keep his position? Revoke his status and let someone else take his place, it's not like he will be coming back any time soon. Even if the current Gym Leader will return, we refuse to accept him as the Gym's Leader again._

_If you are still not convinced, we will gladly let the people of Hammerlocke all sign a petition to take away his status. You also need to consider that Gym Leaders have special protection before the law – would you really want to let that beast get away from a death sentence so he can continue to terrorize Galar? Stop trying to keep the tradition alive and think of the people's safety._

_Sincerely,_

_The citizens of Hammerlocke._

Raihan knew that some of the Hammerlocke's citizens were against him, he saw some people try and attack him from day one, but he would have never thought that all of Hammerlocke was so set on getting him executed just for being part dragon.. what did his Gym staff think? Were they also glad that Raihan was gone? Were they really like everyone else despite Raihan taking them in and teaching them to see everything with an open mind?

He thought he had made at least _some_ sort of positive impact on the city that he was responsible for. But this letter was proof that he hasn't done enough. It was like a slap in the face, the last straw that Raihan needed to completely give in to the darkness that loomed over him, letting the thoughts suffocate him again because frankly, he felt like he didn't even deserve breathing.

His whole frame shook with silent sobs, no sound leaving his mouth despite him crying freely now. Raihan's knees gave in and he sunk to the floor, looking up as if he was praying to God for some answers – but of course nobody heard that prayer. He meant nothing to the people of Galar, he meant nothing to the league...so why should he hope for anything or anyone to come prove him otherwise?

Raihan let himself lie down on the bathroom floor, curling up into himself as if that would mute the thoughts that swarmed his mind. The only person that still held onto him was Leon and that hurt Raihan even more that he ruined Leon's life like this. He was foolish to accept the kindness that Leon offered him when they were eight – Rose was right to forbid him from engaging with others. Rose was right about everything that he said to him...

_You should have died before Leon got too invested in you, you absolute waste of oxygen._

_You dragged Leon down, you didn't do anything but leech off of him._

_You leeched off of everyone – Hammerlocke's residents just caught onto it._

_You are useless._

_Nothing you do matters._

_The only thing you do is destroy everything around you._

_Useless._

_Useless._

_**Useless.** _

Raihan couldn't even find the energy to pick himself up from the floor again, just crying onto the tiles below as his mind got completely taken over by darkness. He knew he shouldn't let himself break down like that – not while Leon was around – and yet he couldn't help it. He just couldn't hold it in any more, not when he got the confirmation that even people that he trusted to be at least somewhat neutral in this whole ordeal had completely turned against him. He wondered what he did wrong – he should have dedicated more time and energy to making all the people in Hammerlocke happy. He should have paid more attention to his habits so he wouldn't look so irritated during the last week of the month...

He should have done _something_ differently...

But that wasn't happening now. He was now in this situation where the whole world wanted to see him dead. And honestly – Raihan was just another one of those people, he was so sick of seeing himself alive.

The dragon's eyes caught on the razor as he looked up – the replacement blades laying on the side of the sink in such an inviting manner... Would Leon notice that something was up before Raihan bled out if he cut himself open right now? His body should still be weak enough to fail regenerating larger cuts, so he could try, right?

Raihan forced his body to stand and leaned onto the sink, reaching out to pop one of the blades out from the plastic container that held them. He looked down to his arm and traced the soft underside with his fingertips, tracing along a vein that was so conveniently sitting right below the surface of the skin, clearly visible even despite the dragon's skin being so tan. If he cut along here, he would surely--

“Raihan!”, a voice from behind him called out and the dragon jumped, dropping the blade down into the sink, the sound of it hitting the surface catching Leon's attention.

The taller male turned around and faced Leon, forcing a shaky smile, trying to somehow cover up what he was trying to do. “A-Are you done with work, champ?”

He purposefully spread his non-injured wing to hide the blade laying in the sink, wiping the remaining tears from his eyes before Leon could question it, but he definitely knew that Leon would notice how red and puffy his eyes were, he wasn't fooling anyone with this act other than himself.

“I was just wondering why I didn't hear the washing machine running for such a long time.”, Leon took a long break from speaking, his gaze pointedly traveling to the sink right behind Raihan before dropping down to the familiar letter lying on the floor. Only then did he fully comprehend the situation. Raihan was really more unstable than he thought - Leon was suddenly very glad that he didn't tell Raihan what he was thinking about earlier. “And it seems that I was right to be worried...”

Leon closed the washing machine and pressed start before slowly moving towards Raihan and scooping the taller male up in his arms. He carried Raihan back to the bedroom and set him down onto the bed, ignoring the protests that the dragon mumbled as he wrapped Raihan up in the warm blanket... up until Raihan said something that truly tipped the ex-champion over.

“Leon, I'm fine. Just leave me be, you have so much work to do-”, Raihan said that so nonchalantly like he always did. But Leon wouldn't have any of it.

“I think even a blind person could see that you _aren't_ fine! What about trying to commit suicide in your boyfriend's bathroom sounds _fucking fine_ to you?! You need help, Raihan, don't you see that?”, the shorter male's voice wasn't loud, but Raihan could clearly see how much he hurt Leon by saying that. He wanted to apologize, so he opened his mouth, but Leon silenced him again. “Don't apologize. You have trouble asking for help and I know it – you always did. You wouldn't ask for help even if it killed you. So just...please, accept the help that I am trying to give you, okay? Just like old times, please just take my hand and don't give up on yourself so easily.”

To Leon's surprise, the dragon shook his head, his fake smile finally breaking. Leon hasn't ever seen Raihan express so much agony before – not even when he had the panic attack yesterday. The dragon's gaze looked like something inside him had already died and his posture was tense as he simply said two words in a weak, shaky voice. “I can't.”

“Why? I am offering it to you willingly, Raihan. You aren't forcing me into anything.” This wasn't the first time Raihan refused his help, but he never looked so hurt about it before – Leon wasn't sure what to do other than carefully prod for answers.

“I can't keep leeching off of you, Leon. I ruined your life enough already.”, Raihan sobbed again, covering his face with his hands. He might as well tell Leon everything now. Maybe the purple-haired male would realize how horrible Raihan was and that disposing of him would make everything better when he heard Raihan recount all the things he did. “I ruined your childhood, you became a slave to Rose because of me, your mum hates us hanging out and thus I am also ruining your relationship with her. And now I am also ruining your reputation and threatening your safety. I'm offering you absolutely nothing in exchange, I'm just a leech that keeps mooching off of you.”

“That's not-”

“Think about it, Lee.”, Raihan looked away, looking out of the window. “If I die now and you show my corpse to the police claiming that you killed me, you will become Galar's new hero. You would be popular again and you would be safe. Galar would be happy again and hell – maybe they would even make the day of my death a holiday, the day where Galar was freed from the dragon's terror. Or maybe not. Maybe nobody would care about it.” Raihan's lips twitched into a feeble smile. “After all, nobody but you cares about me. If you just stop caring so my death doesn't hurt, I can-”

Leon grabbed the dragon by the shoulders and pulled him into a tight embrace. “I will _never_ stop caring about you. You know, you recounted all the negative experiences we had together, but without you I would have never known what a real adventure feels like. You were kind to me from day one and I have so many fond memories of our childhood. You were just learning how to behave like a human when we first met and I will never forget the adorable kiss on the cheek you gave me as thanks on that day. I will never forget that you made the day we met your birthday, it just makes me feel special to be the reason that you smiled so genuinely back then.”

Raihan let out a small whimper and shook in Leon's arms, but didn't protest against it, simply listening to Leon tell him his side of things. And for that, the shorter male was thankful for, so he continued recounting the things he loved about Raihan.

“You were always honest with me when all the other people just told me what I wanted to hear because I was the champion. You showed me so many beautiful things in life - we climbed mountains together, we went where other trainers didn't dare to go. You showed me so many wonderful sights, like that crystal cave that we went to. In short, you gave me life, Raihan. You showed me that I wasn't meant to _just exist,_ that I can do great things and make every day exciting, no matter how mundane it may seem..”, Leon said with a soft smile, looking into Raihan's blue eyes with his own golden ones. “I won't deny what you said, we suffered through a whole lot together, but we also laughed so much together...so please, let's continue this _together_. Let me help you through this because I love you, Raihan. I wouldn't trade your life for anything in this entire world.”

The dragon's lips trembled and he took in a shaky breath. Raihan tried to say something, but all that left his lips was a pathetic sound, so he gave up again and simply nodded, finally returning Leon's hug. He allowed himself to cry freely and his lips just formed another two words. Despite no sound leaving Raihan's lips, Leon understood him perfectly.

“ _Thank you...”_

It wouldn't be easy to accept everything that Leon said, but maybe with time Raihan could learn to see himself in the same way that his boyfriend did – or maybe not. But either way, Raihan knew that it would be okay to rely on Leon a little more. After all, like it or not...they were in this situation together.


	15. Small Steps

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's been 84 years since I posted the last chapter..  
> Hope you enjoy the update!

Raihan continued clinging to the shorter male as he simply cried on his shoulder, unable to calm down until he was too tired to cry any longer. His voice had returned after a full hour of crying and he finally could communicate with Leon again. He would love to tell Leon how much he meant to him, that he was thankful for his support, but the dragon trainer knew that he was in no state to properly put his feelings into words – he just still felt an emptiness that he couldn't yet overcome and that would definitely sully the feelings of gratitude and affection that started welling up in his chest.

So instead of saying anything about the positive feelings that dared to blossom after so much hurt, the dragon grumbled a little and looked at his boyfriend with red, glassy eyes. “Lee, 'm tired...”

Leon smiled softly at the adorable look that he was being given and pushed against Raihan until they both were laying in bed. “Then let's sleep, Rai. I'll hold you in my arms and I won't let go, I promise.”

“...thank you...'love you..”, Raihan muttered and pressed his face into Leon's chest, his tail wrapping around the purple-haired male's thigh as if that would bring them even closer together. He couldn't put his emotions into words properly, but he would at least show Leon his love with his actions.

And it seemed to work, since Leon carefully pulled on the blanket so both of them would be covered by it and gently stroked through Raihan's dark locks of hair. “I love you too, Raihan. So very much..”

Leon felt Raihan relax against him and let out a happy purr. The shorter of the two couldn't help but smile happily as he heard the noise that the dragon made upon being cuddled and his hair being stroked. Raihan was definitely not completely back to his happy and confident self, but it was some progress that they talked it out, even if the circumstances could have been more pleasant. Simply feeling the dragon finally relax enough to try and sleep made Leon feel like he made a step in the right direction. He needed Raihan to feel safe with him, otherwise those dark thoughts that made him almost commit suicide would never go away. And if Raihan remained in constant fear of what would happen when he would be found, his sleep would definitely be disrupted by more nightmares and Leon was sure that insomnia would lead to more breakdowns.

Besides, it was currently Raihan's nesting week and there was no telling what would happen if the dragon couldn't properly spend it by sleeping most of the time. Should he ask if Raihan knew the answer to that? He decided that would be a good chance to learn more about his boyfriend and his dragon side.

“Rai?”, he called out softly, only to be met with soft breathing as a reply.

Leon's lips curved into a smile. He was so happy that Raihan finally seemed to get the rest that he so desperately needed and deserved. It was really cute how quickly the dragon fell asleep, but then again, today has been an emotional rollercoaster for them both. Leon was feeling quite tired himself, so he allowed his eyes to fall shut and his mind to slip into unconsciousness. 

* * *

When Leon woke up, it was already the next morning – he honestly didn't know that he could sleep for twelve hours straight, but that just went to show how stressed he had been. The purple-haired male's gaze traveled down, just to find Raihan still fast asleep in his arms. The dragon looked completely peaceful and his eyes weren't puffy anymore.

Honestly, Leon envied that a little – whenever he cried before going to sleep, his eyes would just end up being more swollen in the morning. Raihan on the other hand looked like nothing had happened the day before, looking completely calm as he resumed his slumber. The only thing that Leon could hope for now is that Raihan's well-being correlated with his looks, but it was foolish to expect a full recovery from such a broken state within just one night. Still, the fact that Raihan could sleep at all was an improvement over the last night, where nightmares were plaguing the dragon's nightly rest.

Raihan groaned and stirred in his sleep as if he felt Leon's gaze on him, cracking one eye open to look at his boyfriend, to be met by Leons soft smile that never failed to make his heart flutter. Today was no exception, but the sunlight was too harsh on Raihan's tired eyes so he quickly hid his face in Leon's chest again instead of watching Leon's face longer.

“Mm...mornin'”, he mumbled into Leon's pecs and pressed up closer against the shorter male's body. “...'m still sleepy...”

“That's a good sign though, right? That would mean that you finally feel safe enough to start nesting here.”, Leon said with a happy smile and wrapped his arms tighter around Raihan's frame. He was genuinely happy that he managed to give the dragon such a feeling of safety, he wanted to keep it that way. “You can sleep for a while longer, I'll stay by your side for as long as you want to rest, so don't worry, alright?”

Raihan nuzzled into Leon's chest and hummed contently. “You're too good for me...”, he mumbled with a small smile and inhaled Leon's scent deeply, a wave of happiness washing over him again. He felt safe with this scent that screamed _home_ enveloping him. When people said 'home is where the heart is', Raihan didn't know it would be this literal for him. The dragon trainer knew that he would feel content to be wherever Leon was, even if it was hard to accept such kindness without any means of repaying Leon for it. Well, maybe he could still do something nice for his boyfriend, even if it was insignificant compared to what Leon did for him... “'Wanna make you breakfast though...”

“Just leave that to me, okay? I can take care of you, I know how drowsy you are during this week.”, the ex-champion said with a reassuring smile and gently stroked the dark hair of the taller male. “You already made me a delicious breakfast yesterday, so I can take care of the meals for now. Once your nesting week is over, I'll let you pamper me again with your cooking, alright?”

That sounded like they had an eternity together, like they weren't in danger of being discovered. Leon just said that with such confidence and certainty that the taller male started believing that too. And it was definitely a lie that Raihan was more than happy to believe in, a feeling of false hope blooming in his chest, his fear giving way to complete trust and love for Leon.

Raihan let out a happy purr and leaned up to press a few kisses to Leon's jawline to express those feelings, speaking in between the kisses. “I don't know what I've done to earn you, Leon. You deserve only the best in this world...I'll give you everything and anything you want no matter the cost, I promise.”

The dragon was rambling and his speech slowed down as he fell asleep right then and there, his head falling back down to the pillows and his breathing evening out. Leon had to smile at how Raihan fell asleep instantly like a switch had been flipped, but he was used to it after knowing Raihan and his nesting habits for so long. Still, it never failed to amaze him how sleepy the dragon was to be able to do that every time without fail. Though, that only went to prove Leon's point that Raihan absolutely shouldn't spend his nesting week anywhere where he couldn't see him. Right now Raihan was so vulnerable - anyone would have an easy job if they were sent to finish what the policemen started. The dragon's body was nowhere near fully recovered, so one more hit would be all it would take to snuff him out.

Leon watched his boyfriend sleep and nodded in determination, whispering softly into the silence of the room. “I'll protect you, Raihan...”

With that, the purple-haired male carefully untangled himself from Raihan's grip and unwrapped the dragon's tail from around his leg. He knew he had to be quick with breakfast so that Raihan wouldn't wake up alone, but he also knew that he should get to making breakfast since Raihan has barely eaten anything for at least two days days now – probably more considering that he was on the run the whole time. He understood that his lack of appetite tied in with his mental state, but the dragon needed the energy now that his body was recovering from such heavy injuries.

Leon quickly made his way downstairs and to the kitchen, thinking of what he could make that would be quick and wouldn't be cold by the time Raihan woke up. The only thing he could really make that met those criteria were sandwiches. Come to think of it, that was their breakfast during last nesting week as well. However this time, Leon couldn't just order food and stay in bed – he had to keep working on his tasks as the chairman and he couldn't let anyone into his apartment either.

Thus, he got to making a few sandwiches and after putting them onto a plate he went back up and loaded yesterday's laundry in the dryer before returning to the bedroom and setting the plate onto the nightstand. He went back down to fill the food bowl for the pokemon before returning to bed and cuddling up to Raihan again. Immediately, the dragon's tail wrapped around Leon's thigh again, as if it had a mind of it's own.

_God, that was cute._

The purple-haired male closed his eyes and tried to fall asleep as well, but he couldn't. So instead, he carefully reached out for his Rotom phone and opened the discreet chat app that was designed by Rose himself, contacting the former secretary Oleana. He needed answers and he needed them as soon as possible. He didn't know how long he could hide Raihan here, so he had to get started on making the medicine right away. Thus, he texted the woman that he loathed so much despite his reluctance to do so.

_Leon: I think I can speak for us both when I say that I'd rather not contact you, but the situation is very dire. I need the medication for Raihan and I need it right now, so I'll make it quick._

_Leon: I don't believe that you forgot everything that went into making the medication, so I want you to tell me everything you can still remember._

_Leon: If you fail to do so, I will release information that will completely destroy Rose and make everyone hate him. I know you care about him a lot since you still continue doing work for him, so choose wisely._

The purple-haired male stared at his screen and frowned. He really started to sound like Rose himself, but he knew he had no other choice any more. He had to blackmail and threaten people if he wanted to protect Raihan. He had to become the villain if the people of Galar painted Raihan as one. Besides, it's not like Oleana could forward this conversation to the police and prove that he was essentially blackmailing her. Rose designed the app to delete all messages five minutes after they were read and it blocked the screenshot function, so that Leon couldn't prove everything that Rose did to him and so that he couldn't complain to Raihan whenever Rose emotionally manipulated him via chat. He could finally use this tool to his advantage rather than silently enduring whatever Rose had thrown his way. Leon didn't expect Oleana to respond soon, so he was about to put the phone back to the nightstand, but the Rotom buzzed in his hand, indicating a new message incoming, so the purple-haired male looked at the screen again.

_Oleana: I can tell you the whole recipe no problem. After all, I was the one making the serum over and over again._

_Oleana: However, I am almost certain that you will be unable to use it._

_Leon: How come?_

_Oleana: The truth is, every time Raihan took the medicine, his human self died a little more. If he continues like this, he will soon fully turn into the dragon you saw in the pictures, four legs, scales and everything._

_Oleana: He would even lose the ability to speak. I don't know how quick he would deteriorate into such a state. It could happen in a month if he takes another dosage or it could take years. What I can guarantee is that it **will** happen._

Was that actually true? Or was Oleana instructed by Rose to keep silent about the recipe by all means necessary and was just trying to make him lose interest in learning the truth? Leon frowned and typed out another message.

_Leon: And you aren't saying this just to throw me off? How do I know that you aren't lying?_

_Oleana: Look, Leon. Despite what you might think, I don't mean you any harm. The recipe is actually quite simple – three drops of dragon blood and a dosage of the DHEA hormone plus some nutrients that would help the body pick up after a long slumber during the nesting week. It gives the dragon half a sense of familiarity while also calming it down enough for the dragon features to recede back into his body._

_Oleana: However, the dragon blood also makes the dragon inside him more territorial and makes it take over his host body more and more._

_Leon: Can you prove it in any way?  
  
_ He knew he was getting desperate and grasping at straws with this line of logic, but this couldn't be the end of his search, right? What could he do to make the dragon half calm down enough to make the dragon features disappear without killing off whatever was left of Raihan's humanity?   
  
_Oleana: Think about it. The first time you saw Raihan lose control was when you were ten. Back there he only sprouted wings, right? Have you asked yourself why Raihan suddenly grew horns and a tail now?_

_Oleana: His control over his own self is slipping, Leon. We can't afford to give him another dose of the medicine, not even a reduced one. There is no telling what would happen to his conscience if we did. He could lose all his morals and go on a rampage killing everyone who ever wronged him – which by now should be everyone except you._

Leon frowned and looked down onto the sleeping form of Raihan next to him. He didn't look like he could hurt anyone except himself. It was so hard to imagine that scenario and yet Leon didn't want to risk losing Raihan like that. So what if he found an alternate solution to this?

_Leon: Couldn't we just leave out the dragon blood then? After all, from what I understood it is the thing that makes him lose control over his dragon half._

_Oleana: If that were so easy, we would have left it out ages ago. But only his human blood would accept the DHEA if we left it out. Thus, it wouldn't damage the human part of him, but it would prevent him from turning back into a human as well – making the medicine completely useless._

_Leon: Alright. Still...thank you for explaining everything to me._

_Oleana: I hope you can find a solution to this. Frankly I cannot think of one aside from what Sir Rose had suggested._

_Leon: Whatever happens, I will never follow Rose's advice of killing him. Have a good day, Ms. Oleana._

Why was everyone being so hellbent on just killing Raihan without giving him a chance? Sure, the fact that the dragon features would now remain complicated a lot of things, but Leon wasn't about to throw in the towel like that. He had to think of something, anything...

“Leon...~”, a deep purr tore the former champion out of his thoughts. “A frown doesn't suit you, Leon...~” The dragon leaned up again and kissed down Leon's neck, the dragon's tail wrapping tighter around Leon's thigh, as if to fully call the shorter male's attention to himself.

The way Raihan said his name made Leon smile again and he leaned down to place a kiss on top of Raihan's head, just above his forehead. The dragon purred happily again, clinging to Leon's shirt.

“Are you feeling better?”, Leon asked , quickly turning off the screen of his Rotom phone so Raihan wouldn't see the conversation before it got deleted, all the while maintaining eye contact with the taller male. “I made some sandwiches for you, are you hungry?”

Raihan looked up and gave a lazy open-mouthed smile, his sharp canines becoming visible once again. “Oh! You were up already? I didn't even notice you getting out of bed...guess I was really that tired, huh..?”

“That's alright. I made sure that nothing happened while you were asleep.”, the purple-haired male said with a smile of his own. “So, are you hungry?”

Raihan sighed and sat up, leaning over to the nightstand n his side of the bed and taking two of the sandwiches that were on the plate. His tail stayed wrapped around Leon's leg all the while, as if letting go of the shorter male would make him disappear. He handed Leon one of the sandwiches with another lazy grin tugging at his lips. “And I thought I was the dragon here. Usually dragons are the ones guarding their treasure...or their king.”

“Well, once in a while it is alright for the king to protect the dragon, don't you think?”, Leon joked, putting his phone down and taking the sandwich offered to him by the taller male. “This really takes me back, cuddling with you in bed like this and eating sandwiches for breakfast.”

Raihan took a bite of his sandwich and hummed in thought. “Yeah, it was our first nesting week ever together. Though the conditions were much more in our favor back then. Rose had covered for us both disappearing from the public eye like that and we could really both relax without any worries...” He chewed and swallowed before turning to Leon again. “Come to think of it, he did quite a lot to make sure that the nesting week ran smoothly. What the hell did he ask of you in exchange for such a service?”

Leon went to bite into his sandwich as well, but paused halfway, freezing when Raihan asked the dreaded question. “Does it even matter anymore? I did what he asked and that's that.”

He didn't want to lie to Raihan any more, but he also didn't feel comfortable sharing it with the dragon because it would leave a bitter aftertaste on the memory of the first time they had sex. Leon treasured that memory despite everything that Rose had ordered him, but Raihan would surely think that they only did it because Rose wanted them to and the former champion was against that.

“That bad, huh?”, Raihan said with a sad smile. “You don't have to tell me if it hurts you so much to remember that...but I'd love to know what it was if you are ever ready to tell me.”

The purple-haired male frowned and shook his head. “Look, it really doesn't matter. It wasn't anything bad, nothing that I wouldn't do on my own.”

“Well, then...it shouldn't be a problem to tell me if you would do it either way, is there?”, Raihan pressed on, finishing his sandwich, his beautiful blue eyes fixated on Leon's form.

Leon let out a long sigh. Dragon or not, this was still Raihan - stubborn as ever. Well, if he insisted on hearing the truth, Leon wouldn't deny him that. “If you keep pressing the matter like that, I won't keep quiet any longer.”, he paused and finished his sandwich as well, before elaborating further. “Rose asked me to let you do whatever you wanted, specifically letting you claim me regardless of what I want during that week because he wanted data on your behavior during mating season.”

“Then you-”

“No, Raihan. I just said, I wanted it. Sure, I was scared at first since the bite on my neck really hurt, but once I got used to that, I enjoyed every second of it – you didn't just _claim_ me, you made sure I was alright and that I was fine with whatever you did to me. It was completely consensual after the bite.”, Leon said, his face turning serious again. “And I am proud of the scar that I have on my neck from that bite, so I regret absolutely nothing. If it hadn't been for it, I would've completely despaired during the time we were separated.”

The dragon seemed to perk up at that again, his worried look disappearing and being replaced with a more eager one. “Then...how about you do the same for me?”

“Huh?”, Leon looked back into the cyan eyes quizzically.

“You can bite my neck and make sure to leave a scar there.”, the taller male tilted his head to the side and bared his neck, the jet black hair falling over his shoulder as he did. “Not that I'm saying that we will get separated anytime soon, but I have so many scars on my body from other people...I'd love to have one from you, Leon.”

“Are you sure you're up for it? Your body is still recovering and there is no telling what your reaction to getting bitten like that would be.” It was very hard to control himself when Raihan gave him that needy look, but Leon knew he had to be the responsible one here when all Raihan did was act on pure instinct.

Raihan leaned in closer until his face was just a few inches away from Leon's, his breath ghosting over the champion's lips with the promise of a kiss. “Come on, Leon...you're leaving for work tomorrow and there is no telling if you will be able to work from home after that. There won't be another time this week that we have a chance to do this.”

Raihan wasn't sure what he meant by _this._ Was it the bite? Did he want to submit to Leon now so that his dragon wouldn't feel the need to mate later in the week when Leon might be absent? Or perhaps he simply wanted Leon to make him bleed as payback for the pain that he had inflicted on Leon back then? Either way, Raihan knew that he wanted Leon to leave a mark on him right now, whatever the reason was.

“If you're sure about it, I can do that.”, Leon nodded and pushed Raihan back a little, his palm resting on Raihan's chest as Leon's golden eyes looked up at Raihan's intently. “But only if you eat all the food I made you. You need the energy to recover right now above everything else.”

“So, this is my reward for eating properly again?”, Raihan asked with a grin. “Sounds good to me. Then let's finish our breakfast.”

With that, Raihan took the plate with the sandwiches and continued eating without anything else. The purple-haired male smiled proudly...this tactic could work so that Raihan could recover quickly - both physically and mentally. Small rewards for taking good care of himself should reinforce Raihan's sense of self-preservation and maybe even improve his sense of self-worth.


End file.
